


Lockwood Part 3

by Jadders92



Series: Lockwood [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Ancient History, Angst, Apparating (Harry Potter), Aurors, Babies, Birthday, Black Lake, Boggarts, Brothers, Celebrations, Dark Magic, Death, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Elder Wand, F/M, Family, Fanart, Fire, Fluff and Smut, Forbidden Forest, Funeral, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Growing Up, Gryffindor, Healers, Horcruxes, Hufflepuff, Inspirational Speeches, Italy, Lies, Love, Lust, Ministry of Magic, Pompeii, Pregnancy, Professors, Prophecy, Ravenclaw, Research, Secrets, Slytherin, Smut, St Mungo's Hospital, Struggle, Teen Crush, Teenage Drama, Truth, War, Werewolves, challenge, dark wizard, puffpods, teacher, werewolf cure, wolf - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-02
Updated: 2018-05-19
Packaged: 2018-11-22 10:56:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 78,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11378763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadders92/pseuds/Jadders92
Summary: The third instalment of the Lockwood series, we will delve further into the past and uncover secrets that should never come to light. Remus will have some big choices to make as will Angelina and more and more people from the Harry Potter series will make an appearance.I'm still writing a lot of the series so updates will be on the way and please enjoy where the story is going, comments are always a blessing to wake up to so make sure you leave some, whether to say you're enjoying the series, to ask questions or to simply say hello, I respond to them all.If you would like to contact me, the way to do so is through this email: jadders92@hotmail.comPART 4 is up!





	1. The Life I Should Have

Darren and I had kept in more regular contact after Christmas, given the events with Clara and what was happening in Japan, I thought it best to keep up with my brother and make sure he was staying safe. Ruben was beginning to hate the long journeys so I began using the floo network to send Darren messages.

Remus had been notably happier than I'd ever seen him, always with a spring in his step, a kind word to my parents when he visited. My mother took a real liking to him and it made me all the happier for it.

My birthday had crept up sooner than I expected and Jack and I had a joint celebration when he could get a day off work. My parents were kind enough to hold it at the house and just about everyone I knew had made an appearance. Even the minister had given me a card that morning when I'd been leaving the ministry.

‘Last year of being a teenager Lockwood.’ He chuckled. ‘Make it a good one.’ Fudge gave me a quick wink and wandered back towards a group of wizards he'd previously been dealing with. I'd been asked to consult on a few cases the Aurors office was dealing concerning werewolves and a few other creatures over the previous four months and it had Benji and myself being sent to various parts of the country to either interrogate or investigate what was happening.

I caught up to him just as we were leaving the ministry to head back to my house. ‘That's nice of the minister.’ Benji pointed to the card as we began fighting through the crowds of people leaving work. 

‘I guess with all the work we've been doing, it's more a thanks than anything.’ I smiled shaking my head. It had been a tough few months for Benji, he was desperately trying to settle into his life with Jocelyne and keep her happy whilst also working hard on his career. Benji had ambition and I admired that in him, he looked up to Kingsley more than anyone and as a result kept a more open mind about things. His temper had cooled somewhat as well, it was no longer the little things that frustrated him, but he credited Jocelyne with that particular achievement. 

‘So, small piece of news that might interest you,’ he said just as reached the exit of the ministry, getting ready to apparate. ‘Kingsley has put in a request to make me an expert in lycanthropy.’ We were suddenly in my back garden and I hugged my friend so tightly.

‘That's amazing news!’ I laughed.

‘If it goes through it will be.’ Benji pulled away almost in tears at the news. ‘I'll be the only one in the department, so it'll all go through me, anything to do with werewolves in the country, I'll be the one dealing with it and with Jack providing healing input… well, we can finally make an impact.’

‘I can't believe it, I never thought this would happen, ever.’ I smiled, unable to stop.

‘It also means a pay rise and I can take Jocelyne somewhere nice in the summer.’ Benji continued as we headed toward the busy house. ‘I need you and Jack to do me a favour though, I'm trying to make it a surprise, so I can't exactly just walk up to her and ask where she wants to go, will find out a couple of places she'd like to visit and et me know so I can start planning?’

‘Of course I will.’ I nodded, still smiling. ‘Thank you for coming.’

‘I'll always be here for you getting old Angie.’ Benji winked and went to find Jocelyne. 

Remus had found me and given me a quick kiss whilst I was talking to David who had managed to get a week off to spend travelling with Cassie. Remus gently ran his thumb over the base of my spine as we stood talking about various things that had happened since the wedding. 

Cassie still had yet to become accustomed to her ex professor being at most of the social gatherings she went to, but she was getting used to it at least. 

The celebrations went on well into the evening and soon mine and Jacks parents brought forth a huge wolf-shaped cake and we were both ushered towards it and laughed.

‘Make a wish.’ My mother said kissing the top of my head. I thought for a moment I could hear the whispers of other people telling me to make a wish as well, but most people were just smiling and waiting for us to blow out the candles.

Everyone cheered and began enjoying the celebrations again. I even saw my dad and Lily Potter dancing while my mother and James laughed at them. Remus had stayed close and on occasion would give me a small kiss on my cheek.

‘Happy birthday.’ He whispered close to my ear, once again placing a small kiss to my cheek. ‘I'm very proud of you Angelina.’

‘You're in a very good mood.’ I said raising my eyebrow slightly and attempting to open a whiskey bottle that Lyall had been kind enough to get me. ‘It's my birthday and even I'm not smiling as much as you.’ I managed to get the bottle open and began pouring two glasses. ‘So, why are you so happy?’ I handed Remus the glass and just watched him smiling for a moment.

He took a moment and thought about what he was going to say. ‘One year ago today.’ He said it a little quieter so that no one could hear him. ‘I caught a glimpse of what happiness, true happiness, felt like… a beautiful young woman came to see me, it was her birthday and we shared a moment that I will never forget. It's the memory I use for my patronus, the most powerful one I have… that's why I'm happy.’ Remus half shrugged a little and sipped his whiskey.

‘You deserve to be happy.’ I said watching him carefully and leaning on my kitchen counter.

‘So do you, don't forget that Angelina, never forget that you deserve happiness just like the rest of us.’ Remus smiled at me and I felt him staring at me the way he used to when I was sitting in his office and we would have our chats.

Eventually people began to leave, David and Cassie had made an early exit so they could catch a portkey to America, I loved seeing the both of them happy and would miss them. Jack and Tonks as well as Lily and James left soon after as did a few people who needed to go to work the next day. 

Remus was about to leave to get back to the castle when I thought I heard my father calling for me.

‘Yeah?’ I called back and wandered back into the living room to see him cleaning up. ‘I'll come back and help once I've seen Remus off.’

‘No rush, no rush.’ He waved his hand dismissing my help. 

‘Did you need something just now?’ I asked.

‘No, I'm alright, just make sure Remus is alright to head back tonight. I know his physiology is a little different, but if he feels like the trip back is too much, he's very welcome to stay the night.’ My father assured me and I nodded hearing back towards the kitchen where Remus was helping my mother put the table back into the centre of the room.

‘There we are. Anything else?’ He asked, still with that cheery smile on his face.

‘You've done more than enough Remus, thank you for your help.’ She said and continued clearing away any rubbish. 

Remus picked up his jacket from the chair he'd left it on and I led him outside to the garden.

‘Something bothering you? You've got a bit of a frown on, you didn't enjoy yourself?’ He asked indicating my expression.

‘I'm fine, just tired I suppose.’ I sighed. ‘It's been a long few months.’ I gave a small smile and reached up to wrap my arms around Remus. ‘You'll see me in a couple of days anyway.’

‘You're coming to the school?’ I pulled away, but made sure he could still hold my hips against him.

‘To see Professor Sprout,’ I nodded. ‘She's going to give me a hand collecting a few of the nocturnal puffapods, she says they're a good fertiliser but that the plant only needs to grow in the fertilised soil, once its matured it doesn't really do anything. Thought it could be interesting to see if it can be used to help the flaring you said about.’

‘It's an interesting idea.’ Remus nodded. ‘Have you made much progress on it?’

‘Not really, its taking a bit more work than I'm used to. And with everything happening at the ministry… I'm just finding the moments to sit and think about it a bit few and far between. I'll get there though, don't worry.’

Remus smiled and leaned down to kiss me goodbye. ‘I'll see you soon Angelina. Stay safe.’ 

It was a little easier to say goodbye to Remus when I knew that there was a chance to see him again approaching. When I'd gone back inside, my parents had just about finished cleaning up and I needed to sleep.

The next couple days were spent relaxing in my back garden and tending to a few of the plants I had started growing there. It was nice to have a little time to myself and not have to think about anything other the task at hand. 

Jack had come over for lunch one day, we sat outside in the unusually warm weather and had leftover cake while we talked about some of the things I was working on. He was especially intrigued by the idea of reducing the flaring at the full moon.

‘If you could administer the anti flaring potion, or balm or whatever it ends up being, as soon as the infection occurs, they would stand a better chance of lessening the physical trauma sustained during the first transformation.’ He said as I sent the plates towards the sink to be washed.

‘That's the idea anyway.’ I nodded, knowing that Jack would get it. ‘That's one of the reasons I want to start experimenting with the nocturnal puffapods, Sprout has sent me the notes she's collected on the fertilisation of nocturnal plants and some of her ideas on how they grow underwater. Puffapods are usually found in open fields, so I'd like to see if I can grow some out of water as well as in water.’

‘Would it make a difference in the effects when used medicinally?’

‘Not sure, haven't thought that far ahead yet.’ I shook my head and took a deep breath of fresh April air. ‘There's a lot of work still to do and a long way to go, but there must be a way to do it.’

We sat for a few moments more, just feeling the air and the sun on our faces. 

‘Tonks and I broke up.’ Jack suddenly said and I whipped my head to look at my friend. There was a small amount of sadness to his expression, but it was a little off. ‘It's for the best I think.’

‘I'm so sorry.’ I wasn't exactly sure what else to say. ‘Are you alright?’

‘I'm fine… she and I just weren't… I suppose we just weren't well suited.’ Jack frowned deeply and tried to distract his attention to other things. ‘She told me she's in love with someone else and that it wouldn't have been fair for her to stay with me.’

‘Oh Jack, I'm so sorry.’ I leaned forward and tried to work out what it was I should have done. ‘Do you… we can talk about it if you want?’

‘It's fine.’ Jack shook his head. ‘Like I said, it's for the best.’ Jack took a deep breath and gave me a tight smile. ‘I'd best get back to the hospital. Thanks for lunch Angie.’

‘Anytime.’ I held Jack close to me and suddenly felt very sorry for him. ‘Write if you need anything won't you?’

‘Of course. I'll see you soon and let me know how the research is going, anything that can help during the cycle is a good thing.’ Jack headed up towards the end of the garden and waved before disapparating back to St Mungo's.

I felt a little heavy for the rest of the day, thinking on how I would feel if Remus fell in love with someone else. I wouldn't know what to feel.

 

Remus had been working with a few fifth year students out in the courtyard on their recent essay, when he spotted someone diving into the Black Lake, it could only have been one person.

‘Right, jinxes, counter jinxes and anti jinxes,’ Remus smiled and to his mild annoyance, it didn't go unnoticed by the three Ravenclaw girls he was teaching. It was far too warm for him to be wearing his teaching cloak or tie and he was vaguely aware of how tight his shirt was, it had been a growing insecurity since hearing one of his fourth year Hufflepuffs talking about it a few months back. ‘The essay only asks for definitions and examples, that is what you need to pass, however if you can go into detail and further explain uses for each of them, you'll be well on your way towards the top grades. Any other questions?’ Remus glanced towards the Lake and he knew it would be his undoing, he fully expected the Ravenclaw students to begin whispering about the woman swimming around in there.

‘Sir, do we need to include the historical figures involved?’ Casper Davenport had asked, he was the Gryffindor that had taken over entertaining the other students after Angelina had left the year before and also the one she had avenged when he was just a first year. Remus enjoyed teaching him, he had a great admiration for Angelina and desperately wanted to study werewolves further. He tried hard, worked hard and did his best to think around every problem and find a solution. He wasn't quite as intelligent as Angelina, but he was becoming a brilliant young wizard all the same. 

‘It's not essential for the essay, but for the exam you will want to put in one from each category and explain why they are particularly important in history. That, along with what we've covered the last few weeks will be enough to secure an O grade in the exam.’ Remus nodded and watched Casper jot down a few notes. ‘I think that will be enough for you all to be getting on with over the next few weeks, if anyone requires any further help on anything be it dark arts or other subjects, my door is open as usual.’ Remus smiled and picked up the book he'd been taking to the greenhouse for Angelina. 

There were a few students practising some of the simpler spells for their OWLs and NEWTs in the courtyard and Remus felt a pride for each of them as they progressed through the years at Hogwarts. He noticed that Erin sat alone at the far end, she was studying out of one of her books and Remus was unsure if she was alone on purpose or if her friends were elsewhere. She didn't look especially upset by it so he left the courtyard and headed towards the greenhouse. 

‘Professor Lupin!’ Someone called from down the corridor, Remus turned to see one of his third year's rushing over to him, Remus sighed internally and put on his usual friendly face.

‘Alice, what can I do for you?’ He asked cheerfully. The moment between him asking the question and remembering that she wasn't the most physically coordinated, was filled with him watching her slip over and fall onto the hard concrete. ‘Are you alright?’ He asked rushing over and helping her sit up against the wall, she was clutching her ankle and almost in tears. ‘Let me see.’ He said, immediately feeling for a broken ankle. ‘It's not broken, maybe just a sprain. Nothing to be upset about.’ He tried to cheer her up and she gave a small smile; to his great pleasure he caught Poppy out of the corner of his eye. ‘Poppy!’ He called and she quickly rushed over. ‘Sprained ankle we think.’

‘Oh Miss Peters, what are we going to do with you?’ Poppy shook her head and began helping Alice to the hospital wing. 

‘Come and see me when you're finished Alice and I'll answer your questions.’ He assured her as she left with Poppy. 

Remus vaguely wondered how many more interruptions he would have before he reached the greenhouse. He could see the silhouette of Angelina emerging from the lake. She didn't appear to have anything other than her wand on her and began putting her warm clothes on again. Remus casually wandered over to her and waved back at a few of the students who greeted him on the way past. 

‘Well well well, look who it is.’ Angelina said, upon seeing him. Remus just shook his head and put his hands on his hips. ‘I see you're still the subject of fascination to the Ravenclaws.’ She indicated the students he had been teaching a few minutes ago and Remus immediately moved his hands letting his jacket fall back over his body. He turned back to see Angelina looking behind her as if she heard something.

‘Angelina?’ He asked and she snapped back, putting her t-shirt on.

‘Is that the book?’ She asked distracting him for a moment.

‘Oh yes, I would've brought it to the greenhouse sooner, but I got caught up with a few students.’ Remus explained handing over the book on water plants. ‘What's the thinking behind it?’

‘Well,’ Angelina began, Remus carried her jumper as they made their way to the greenhouse finally. ‘As you know, puffapods are usually found in fields, huge clumps of them ready to set off a chain reaction of spontaneous sprouting should they come into contact with anything solid.’ Remus noticed how animated she had become when telling him about what she had learned, she would make an incredible teacher. ‘But the ones I found were underwater and nocturnal, sprouting during the blue moon. I'm trying to figure out firstly why they grow underwater and secondly why the nocturnal ones exist in the first place.’

‘And you think it can help with the flaring?’ Remus asked, he was somewhat aware of seeing the fifth year Ravenclaws again and it was once again mildly annoying.

‘Well, I'm not sure.’ Angelina stopped and flicked through a couple more pages. ‘I was talking to Jack yesterday, he came over for lunch and he mentioned administering the anti flaring whilst trying to heal the infected wound.’ Angelina looked up at Remus while she thought and he loved watching her think out loud. ‘Now that presents several things I need to consider, one being any reaction between the silver and dittany and the anti flaring, the second it depends on the person infected getting to St Mungo’s within a reasonable time frame and it also doesn't do anything for the already existing werewolves.’ Angelina sighed and her eyes focused on Remus. ‘Why are you smiling?’

Remus found himself laughing a little. ‘I don't know… I suppose because I'm happy to see you.’ He said and took a breath. ‘So, still a lot of work to do?’

Angelina nodded. ‘I don't even know if this is possible, that's the problem. I keep telling myself that if I can conceive of it, then yes of course it's possible, but everything is telling me that this is asking a bit much.’

‘Angelina.’ Remus stroked her arm and smiled. ‘You can do this, you can either find a way or find out for certain if it is or isn't possible. I believe you are capable of extraordinary things, I've always believed that. There will be struggles and hardships along the way, there will be frustration and anger and you'll want to yell at the world when you get stuck going in circles, but ultimately that is what the journey is about. Experience and learning. You've always known that.’

He watched her bright smile come back and she quickly glanced around to see if anyone was close by, before giving him a quick kiss. ‘Thank you. You always know what to say.’

‘I try to.’ Remus nodded and handed Angelina her jumper. ‘Now, you have puffapods to research and I have a few things to attend to.’ He began to leave the greenhouse to head back to his office. ‘Can I chance my luck and ask you to dinner tonight?’ 

‘I don't know, what's in it for me?’ She shot back with a cheeky grin.

‘The chance to spend an evening with me, free from any obligation, responsibility or less than gentlemanly intention.’ Remus smiled.

‘The last one I don't believe.’ Angelina winked. ‘Come and find me when you've finished your errands.’ 

Remus nodded and turned to leave, he stopped and groaned internally when he distinctly heard the muffled giggling of the three Ravenclaws that most definitely heard him asking Angelina to dinner. He was never living it down.

 

I spent most of the afternoon working with Professor Sprout on the nocturnal puffapods and trying to figure out if they could grow outside of the water. It all looked very promising and I had a good feeling about them. We had agreed that when I got the chance I could come back harvest a few of them so that I could do a little more research at home.

Remus had come back a little later than I expected and apologised as he needed to visit a student in the hospital wing. I was beginning to get a glimpse into his life at the school and it wasn't that I didn't think he was kind, but it was more a case of not quite realising how many students looked up to him. I was beginning to think he might not have realised it either.

I quickly took a shower in his room and we left for dinner in Hogsmeade.

‘It's been so long since I was here.’ I said as we walked through the streets towards the three broomsticks. 

‘It's not really changed since I was at school, I hardly expect to change in the near future.’ Remus said. He was holding my hand and nothing had felt more right, he was warm and smiling and up for a good night. It was everything I never knew I wanted.

We sat down in a corner and watched all the witches and wizards beginning their evening of getting drunk and laughing the night away. 

‘That sounds promising.’ Remus nodded, twisting his glass gently as I told him about the day I spent in the greenhouse. He looked so cool, sitting facing the rest of the pub with one leg thrown over the other. ‘So what would the difference be between growing them in water and growing them on land?’

‘No idea.’ I shook my head. ‘Maybe strength when put into a potion, could react differently to a blue moon, might not react at all. I have no idea, but I'll be back in a few weeks to collect a few to work on at home.’ I took a breath and thought about what else I wanted to tell Remus. 

‘What is it?’ He asked, of course, I only had to think it and he would know there was more.

I rolled my eyes and sipped my firewhiskey. ‘Jack and Tonks broke up.’ I said, not quite looking at Remus. ‘He said she fell in love with someone else.’

‘I'm so sorry.’ Remus said, though his face didn't quite match his words.

‘You don't need to say it if you don't mean it.’ I didn't quite mean it as a snap, but it just came out that way. ‘I know you didn't like him much.’

‘It was never that I didn’t like him Angelina.’ Remus turned to face me and kept me focussed. ‘He was the first man you kissed and I was jealous. It was never my place to be jealous and now that is simply how I think of Jack. He's a wonderful man and very deserving of your friendship, I will never forget the work he did on Lockwoods Wolfsbane, he works hard and he has chosen a very difficult career path, one which I can see he is taking in his stride and already exceeding at. He is a very deserving man, a good man, but I'm afraid he will always be someone I will be wary of because of the past you share.’ Remus sighed. ‘I am sorry that his relationship ended the way it did, I understand how he might be feeling… will you send him my apologies?’

I nodded and thought I didn't quite understand Remus's position fully, I could see he was trying to feel sorry for Jack.

‘Can we talk about something else?’ Remus smiled weakly. ‘What have you got planned for the next few weeks?’

We talked a little about my being sent to Ireland for a few days with Benji and a little more about the possibilities of my research, but soon it was time to get back to the castle. I had taken Remus up on his invitation to stay the night and we walked past the glimmering lake on our way back to the castle.

‘Can I ask you a question?’ I said as I sat on the edge of his bed. Remus nodded with a curious frown as he began unbuttoning his shirt. ‘Do you think that… I mean, if it can happen to Jack, it could… women look at you and they notice you, women who are more attractive than me and… I'm not accusing you of anything, I'm just thinking about the possibilities.’ I stumbled over every thought I had and hoped that Remus could understand me.

He sighed and knelt down in front of me, holding my hand and stroking the back of it. ‘You never have to worry about me leaving you, not for any reason. These things happen for a reason and it's usually because one or both people in a relationship aren't happy with the arrangement, or because they were never in love in the first place. It can happen for any reason, you're right, but I will never leave you. You have to trust that.’

He smiled gently at me and stroked my cheek, pulling a small smile from me as well.

‘How do you know so much about relationships?’ I chuckled as Remus continued getting ready for bed.

‘How do yo know so much about everything else?’

‘I went to the library.’ I frowned.

Remus stopped and chuckled. ‘Okay, I didn't go to the library to study people, but I did watch people when I was in school, I learnt from my parents how to show affection, how to deal with arguments and I learnt from James and Sirius how to be romantic and charming, something I'm surprised you don't take more advantage of… but then, I may not feel this way if you did.’

‘What do you mean?’ I asked, getting underneath the covers and waiting for Remus to join me.

‘Well, how to put this… there are almost exactly ten years between us. Traditionally people your age would see someone my age and take advantage of either money or success and try to get an easy ride through life.’ Remus explained. ‘However, the type of woman I find myself attracted to is someone with intelligence, someone who is brave and kind and someone who is accepting of people like me, the last one being the most essential. You are more than I ever hoped I could find in a woman and you also happen to be a very attractive woman, hence why I get jealous easily.’

‘I'm not that attractive.’ 

‘To me, you are the very definition of attractive.’ Remus leaned over and gently kissed me. ‘Can I get in bed now?’

‘Absolutely.’ I breathed, not quite meaning to. Remus smiled again and let me lie against his chest while his fingers ran through my hair, it was something he was becoming more and more accepting of. He had scars all over his body, but as I kept reminding him, I barely noticed anymore. ‘Is this the future you envisioned for us?’

I felt him chuckle against me. ‘It's certainly something I hoped for every night.’ Remus kissed the top of my head and took a deep breath relaxing into a more comfortable position. 

‘Who's Sirius?’ I felt Remus suddenly still underneath me, he let his breath go and swallowed uncomfortably.

‘He used to be a friend from school.’ It was very vague and I wondered why exactly Remus wouldn't give a fuller explanation.

‘What happened to him?’ I pushed for a little more information.

‘We don’t speak anymore.’ Remus sighed. ‘I don't really want to talk about him. I'm sorry Angelina.’

I didn't say anything else and accepted that it might have been something I wasn't ready to hear about Remus's past. Whoever Sirius was, he was obviously someone Remus would rather forget, maybe it was something to do with the war, maybe someone he lost. It didn't matter to me, all that did matter was that the Remus I held against me was happy.


	2. Professor Lockwood?

‘You should have told her something Remus.’ Lily said as she handed him a cup of tea. James was training for a big game coming up and Remus had decided to visit Lily and Harry before the Easter holidays ended. Harry though, wasn't well and had spent most of the time sleeping. 

‘What was I supposed to say?’ 

‘Anything! Absolutely anything!’ She exclaimed and sat next to Remus chewing a biscuit and shaking her head. ‘Angie is the most important person you have in your life right now and she has no idea who you are beyond those castle walls. How much does she know about your childhood? About your mother? About the things you dreamed of when you were young?’

‘We've… we talked about my time at Hogwarts.’ Remus remembered the year before when she had witnessed a werewolf transformation for the first time, they had talked over dinner about some of the things he did in school.

‘Is that it?’ Lily was almost in disbelief. ‘Remus, you are so smart, but you are an idiot. Angie is the best thing that could ever happen to you, she is smart and understanding, you can't take that for granted… as your friend, I'm telling you, you need to open up to her, you need to show her that you are a flawed human being, just like she is. How can you expect her to process how she feels if she thinks her feelings are less than yours? If she thinks you're some kind of superhuman?’

‘Because, I can't…’ he could barely get the words out. ‘Lily, I can't lose her. She's happy. The way she looks at me sometimes, no one has ever looked at me like that.’

‘I know.’ Lily had nothing but sympathy for her friend. ‘I saw it on her birthday, she thinks the world of you, but you need to think about her. When she realises you're human just like the rest of us, adoration will be too small a word to describe the way she looks at you from then on.’

Remus smiled a little and placed his hand over Lily's. ‘Thank you.’

‘Anytime, now will you help me make some more pepperup potion for Harry? We've run out.’ Lily asked and didn't even wait for a reply as she got the ingredients.

 

My research was coming along nicely, I had a few samples of the nocturnal puffapods that I was testing in potions similar to the wolfsbane, so far it was mixing well. At least I knew it could be integrated into the wolfsbane no problem, the effects would still need to be tested and Clara had offered herself up before I even told her about the new formula.

‘Well, where else are you going to find willing volunteers?’ She said as we bumped into each other in the ministry reception, she was rushing off to her office while I was leaving with Benji to go and sort out some dispute between traders in Diagon Alley. I wasn't used to dealing with everyday Auror issues, but no one else was around to help and Benji needed back up.

It was settled fairly quickly and we got back to the office in time for me to catch my mother leaving for the day. 

Overall I was satisfied that this was how my life would be moving forward. I made enough money travelling around and doing errands for the ministry, I had enough time to work on my research and I saw my friends more regularly than I had anticipated. Even with Darren and David in different countries I was happy the regularity of our contact.

I had made plans to move my research out of my room and into my father's old office that was now just a spare room. He'd had a little input on where some of his old papers and text books would go when he came home from work, but mostly it was me just clearing space for my own papers and books.

It took me nineteen years to realise that my parents were very well off, we had a big house that could house ten people, the furniture was clean and always felt new and there was space, so much space in every room. You could fit two double beds in my bedroom and still have room to stretch out on the floor and Darren's wasn't any different. My parents had done so much to ensure that their children had everything they needed to grow up in a warm, spacious and loving home and I'd never really appreciated until that moment.

I made them dinner every night I was home to say a small thank you for ensuring my childhood was as nurturing as it could be.

‘Oh Angie, we’re your parents,’ my dad had chuckled putting his arm around me while we watched the sun go down. ‘You being our daughter and following the path that makes you happiest is all the thanks we need.’ 

I heard my mother call my name from inside the house and smiled at my father.

‘I'm coming.’ I called, taking a breath.

‘What?’ My father frowned deeply.

‘Mum just called, I'll go and see what she wants.’ I said, standing up.

‘Angie, your mother went to bed after dinner, she'll have been asleep for an hour now.’ He said and I could see his mind racing. 

‘Must've just been the wind.’ I frowned slightly and shook my head, sitting back down. I noticed though that my father didn't move though, he was still looking at me. ‘What?’

‘Nothing.’ My father breathed a smile. ‘Come on, let's go inside and lock up for the night.’ I could see a faint worried expression still lingering on his face, but I didn't ask about it, instead I helped him lock up for the night and wrote to Remus. 

Remus,

I'm coming back to the school tomorrow to pick up the puffapods, I'm sure I'll see you around, if not let's get dinner again. 

It's been made official now, Benji is now an expert in lycanthropy, he's got his own office and all werewolf cases go through him, every single one. Any sightings or accidents, all of it goes through Benji and like he said, with Jack leading at St Mungo’s it'll be easier for him to process anything from that stand point. It's not the biggest leap forward, but it is a step closer to getting werewolves reclassified. It's progress.

I hope you're doing well, I know the full moon was a couple of nights ago. I was watching it from my brand new research lab – dad’s old office – it was huge, I actually would like to ask you about it, about whether the size of the moon makes a difference during transformations. We can talk about it tomorrow though, I'm just about to go to sleep.

Yours

Angelina 

I closed the book and shoved it on top of my dresser as usual and let sleep take me.

 

‘Can you hear me? I'm right here, I can feel you, I can hear you. Angie wake up!’

 

I sat up suddenly and felt sweat dripping down my face. It was just a nightmare. Only a nightmare. I let myself lie back and took a few breaths, the sun was just coming up, it must've been early. 

For some unknown reason I picked up my book and found Remus had replied to my letter.

Angelina,

Dinner sounds wonderful. 

I promised my first years that if they did well during the year I would take them out for a class beside the forbidden forest, so watch out for any stragglers! There is a rumour going around the school that you are a mermaid, some of the fourth years think I've befriended you and taught you how to walk on land. I thought it might make you laugh.

Send Benji my congratulations, that is a wonderful leap forward for the werewolf community, I'll let James and Lily know the good news. 

Admittedly it did feel different this month, but of course we can go into depth tomorrow if you like.

Sweet dreams.

Yours always

Remus

I read the reply a few times and felt myself calm down. It was four in the morning and it didn't matter how hard I tried, I wasn’t going back to sleep any time soon. So instead I stayed awake and went through a few of my notes from the previous day until my parents woke up and we had breakfast together.

‘You look tired Angie.’ My father noticed as he handed my mother a cup of tea and kissed her head. I knew my mother had been stressed with work lately and I was glad to see that my father could make her feel better about the whole thing.

‘I've been up since four.’ I nodded, sipping my tea. ‘I had weird dream, well nightmare, I guess.’

‘Anything you want to talk about?’ My mother leaned forward with a concerned look.

I shook my head not really knowing how to describe it. ‘It was just this weird voice, I don't even remember what it was saying. Something about waking up, I think.’ I thought I caught the tail end of a shared look between my parents, but they smiled and settled into their breakfast and no more was mentioned on the subject.

 

Remus read and reread the letter a few times. George was notably worried about his daughter, enough to write to Remus and ask his help in the matter. Angelina had had a nightmare and George was concerned it wasn't just a nightmare given what he had seen that evening in her believing her mother had called her.

When Remus thought about it, he had seen on two occasions when Angelina had been looking around as if someone had called her name, one by the lake and the other at her birthday. He didn't think anything of the two incidents as there were maybe a dozen explanations for her behaviour. 

Remus wrote immediately and sent his reply via floo network to St Mungo’s, he would of course look after Angelina while she was close.

The morning rolled on and just as he was bringing his first years out to explore the edge of the forest, he caught a glimpse of Angelina once again diving into the lake.

‘What was that?’ One of his first years asked. 

‘Angelina Lockwood.’ Remus announced as they got close to where they would be studying. ‘She's the world’s leading expert in lycanthropy and has been studying a few underwater plants that she found in the Black Lake when she was at school.’

‘Is she a werewolf?’ One of the Gryffindors asked.

‘No no no, she just studies them.’ Remus assured the class, he caught Erin's eye and gave her a small smile. ‘And here we are.’ Remus led the students to a small clearing just at the edge of the forest. ‘Now, there are maybe a few dozen creatures that live in this particular part of the forest, I want us all to see what we can find…’ Remus continued to teach and soon needed to remove his jacket as the heat became a little much even for him.

As he suspected, a group of his Gryffindor students had disappeared and Remus looked over towards the lake where they stood pointing to an area where Angelina would presumably appear very soon. She had been underwater for close to thirty minutes and his class was about to end.

Remus led the class back towards the castle, stopping at the lake before he did. Angelina had emerged from the water just as they stopped behind the Gryffindors. He had forgotten how fit she had become in the last few years since the Triwizard Tournament, she swam a lot, kept herself healthy and had the added advantage of being ten years younger than him. 

It took her a moment to realise that the Gryffindors were even there, she was instead occupied with a jar full of blue orbs.

‘What are they?’ One of the first years asked. Angelina suddenly looked towards the young students and to Remus's surprise she smiled and half chuckled.

 

Remus had warned me there could be first years waiting for me to emerge from the water, but their curiosity caught me off guard.

I laughed and enlarged the jar to its full twelve inch size and put it down on the rock for them to look at. ‘They are nocturnal puffapods,’ I explained putting my warm jeans on. ‘Now, usually puffapods are found in large patches of grass and are either a pink, yellow or orange colour, mostly dependant on how much sun they can get. They are that colour because they draw energy from the sun, so why do we think these ones are blue?’

I suddenly saw Remus shaking his head and allowing the rest of the class to observe the puffapods, he handed me a towel and smiled.

‘Because they get power from the night?’ One Hufflepuff asked.

‘From the moon, that's right.’ I nodded. She was just about right. 

‘Why do you have so many?’ I recognised the student as Erin.

‘For my research.’ I said carefully, still drying my hair. ‘I study werewolves mostly, I believe the puffapods could help me in designing new tools to help them live as pain free a life as possible.’

‘Why are they in pain?’ It was a particularly sad looking Gryffindor girl, she seemed to feel immensely sorry for werewolves and I felt it as well.

‘I don't know.’ I admitted, it was honest it was all I could do. ‘But I hope to find out one day and finally put a stop to it. It's a terrible thing to become a werewolf, they live with a lot of fear and a lot of loneliness. But we can do our part to help them,’ that seemed to catch the attention of most of the students. ‘Werewolves are people, just like me and you, they feel pain the same as you and I, they feel happiness and compassion and only ever want to feel accepted the same way we all do. I suppose werewolves are in pain because no one wants to get close to them or be their friend, people are scared of them for reasons that don't make sense. So, when the time comes for Professor Lupin to teach you about werewolves, take the time to listen and try to understand life from their perspective. That's how we can help werewolves, by talking and being understanding… and the odd bar of chocolate always helps.’ I gave a quick wink to the class and a few of them giggled.

Remus handed me my t-shirt and I felt much better for putting it on.

‘Right, off we go, back to class, we've taken up enough of Miss Lockwood’s time.’ Remus gave me an easy smile.

‘Professor Lockwood, is it true you're animagus?’ A student suddenly asked and Remus suddenly looked a little helpless. 

‘Yes, I am.’ I couldn't help my laugh. ‘And if you all pass your exams at the end of the year, I'll come back and show you.’ I promised. Remus mouthed a thank you and we began ushering the class back towards the castle.

‘Angie!’ I turned towards the peaceful looking lake, no one was there. I felt my heart race a little, it was the same voice from my dream the night before, but it was impossible. 

‘Angelina?’ Remus called, he frowned at me and I no longer felt my heart racing out of fear. I shook my head and continued up towards the castle. It must have been my imagination. 

 

Remus dismissed the class as soon as he could and asked that Angelina come and see him when he had his free period straight after. She still seemed a little distracted and Remus had a growing concern since the letter from George that morning.

‘Remus.’ She smiled as she entered her old classroom. She took a moment to look around while Remus was still cleaning up after the first years.

‘Does it feel smaller?’ 

‘Yeah.’ She frowned a little as she grazed her hand over the wardrobe that had a new boggart inside. Remus could see the whisper of a memory floating through her mind. ‘I miss this place.’

Remus watched her sit down in her old seat, she looked more tired than usual. ‘Didn't get much sleep last night?’ He asked, sitting at the desk next to her.

‘No, I woke up at about four and just couldn't get back to sleep.’ She shrugged, still remembering her classes.

‘Any reason for it?’ She gave Remus a suspicious look. ‘Angelina, you've been a little off lately and I'm concerned something's bothering you… is there anything you want to talk about? Anything I can help you with?’

It seemed to take her a moment to think on what she wanted to say.

‘I keep hearing something.’ She started. ‘A voice, except it's not… it's like it's not quite fully formed.’ She sighed realising how out there it sounded, but Remus continued to listen and to make her feel comfortable while she opened up a little. ‘It's like it's mimicking me… I'm scared.’

Remus got up to sit next to her, he placed his hand on her back and held her hand at the same time. ‘I can understand why you might be scared. Hearing voices is always scary, but I promise there is an explanation for it and we’ll find it and we’ll deal with it as best we can.’

‘I know the reasons people hear voices Remus,’ she suddenly turned to him and he could see tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes. ‘What if-‘

The door of the classroom suddenly opened and one of Remus's fifth year Ravenclaws came bursting in. ‘Professor Lupin-‘ she stopped seeing that he was busy. Remus sighed and carefully stood up. It seemed Angelina had barely noticed anyone had come in.

‘I'll be back in a moment.’ He assured Angelina and buttoned his jacket following the fifth year out of the classroom. ‘What can I do for you Meghan? I'm a little busy right now.’ Remus gave a tight smile, he was desperate for this to be over so he could take care of Angelina. 

‘Is there something wrong with her?’ Meghan asked bluntly.

‘There's absolutely nothing wrong with her.’ Remus shot. ‘What can I do for you?’

‘Professor McGonagall found a boggart in one of the broom cupboards.’ She said, Remus could see the attraction in her eyes and he hated it. ‘She said it was possible there was more than one.’

Remus sighed. ‘Alright, tell her to lock the cupboard and I'll deal with it later tonight. Will you let her know that I will need to speak with her prior to that, I'm just with Angelina at the moment.’

‘Yes sir.’ Meghan had a small amount of sadness to her. 

‘In the meantime, you've got an essay to write for me and OWLs to study for.’ Remus tried not to encourage her to dwell on Angelina, it was the last thing she needed and the last thing he wanted for her.

Meghan wandered away and Remus thought he could again hear the sound of her friends giggling behind the corner. He just shook his head and took a breath before heading back inside the classroom.

Angelina was in much the same position as she had been when he left, her head was leaning against the table and she was staring off into space.

‘There's something wrong with me isn't there?’ Angelina said quietly against the wood of the desk. ‘There's something wrong inside me.’ Remus could hear her about break completely. 

Remus sat down with her and brought to rest against his chest. He wasn't sure what it was he was supposed to do, if she was hearing voices then there was something that needed to be done. ‘Angelina there is absolutely nothing wrong with you. We’ll figure it out together, the same way we always have.’ Remus ran his hand through her hair, it always seemed to keep her calm and close to him and at that moment, that was what she needed, to know that someone was always going to be there for her.

It was a long time before Angelina began to move again and it was only to adjust her position against Remus. 

‘What if I'm becoming dark?’ She sniffed. ‘What if I used dark magic last year and now I can't stop it? What if it takes over?’ 

‘Angelina.’ Remus tried to say with some air of authority. She turned to look at him with her shining blue eyes. ‘You are not dark, you will never be a dark witch, I promise.’

‘How do you know that? You can't know that for sure. I can feel it happening and if it does, I'll lose you and I can't, I just can't-‘

‘Angelina, you need to calm down.’ Remus slid his hand up to her face to get her to focus on him. ‘You will never lose me, we've been over this already. No matter what happens, I will always be here, you will always be able to trust me even if you think you cannot trust yourself. Do you understand me?’ It took her a moment, but eventually she nodded and wrapped her arms around Remus. ‘I love you, never forget that.’ Remus whispered against her hair.

Remus had managed to get her to calm down enough and gave her something to help her sleep for a while. He still had a few classes to teach that day and the best thing he could do for her was to write to her father and let her sleep for a while.

The last class was just about dismissed and Remus waved his hand to open the door for the students when George came rushing in. ‘Where is she?’ He asked as soon as he reached Remus's desk. Remus had never seen such fear on someone's face.

‘Through that door.’ Remus said and gave a friendly smile to the students whose attention had been captured. George didn't skip a beat and rushed through to Remus's bedroom. He waited until the entire class had left the room and locked the classroom door, before going in to see George crying for his daughter. ‘What's happening to her?’ Remus said quietly as he approached the bed.


	3. Family History

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep commenting and let me know what your feelings are towards where the story is going!

I woke feeling especially refreshed and opened my eyes to see I was in my bedroom. It was definitely late in the day and I frowned for a moment or two before hearing voices coming from downstairs. It must have been my parents, but I could definitely hear more than two people talking. I got up and wandered down to find, my parents, Remus, Darren and Clara sitting at the kitchen table. 

My father was first up when I came down the stairs. ‘Angie.’ He said, pouring a mug of hot chocolate. I sat at the empty seat, feeling a small ache in my body from swimming. ‘Feeling better?’ He asked and handed me the mug.

‘Yeah, what's going on?’ I said settling down next to Remus who just gave a small smile.

My father sat back in his seat and took a deep breath. ‘Well, your mother and I have decided that given what you've been going through, it's time for us all to sit down and discuss our family history.’

I frowned and glanced around the table, Darren was looking down at the table and my mother and Remus just tried to look as calm as possible, it was only myself and Clara who appeared to be confused at what was happening.

‘Now, before we go into detail,’ my father continued. ‘I would like everyone here to know that what I am about to tell you is a very old and well kept secret among Lockwoods, no one can ever know what I am about to tell you.’ He took another breath. ‘Our family begins nearly three thousand years ago with the birth of twin brothers called Romulus and Remus, they were raised by a she wolf and soon became the founders of Rome. Now, in muggle myth, the brothers were born to be kings, they were great leaders, bold and strong and intelligent as they come. In magical history, the brothers were simply great wizards who fought and died at each other's hands. The truth of it was that Romulus killed Remus out of jealousy, but the battle was bloody and violent and Romulus soon died from the injuries he sustained. The outcome of this battle was a child, this child would be the first to carry the curse and the first to suffer the effects of the brothers’ anger.’ 

‘What kind of curse?’ I asked, finding myself more and more intrigued by the story.

‘Remus was married to a beautiful young woman whom he kept hidden from Romulus, believing that her beauty would capture the attention of his brother and that he would lose her to him.’ My father looked more and more unsettled by the story. ‘Romulus was said to be a man quick to anger and that only his brother had strength enough to calm him, but that strength did not extend to his wife. Remus would go to untold lengths to protect his wife, much like the leader of a pack, he would die for that protection. This is why as you grow older and have children of your own, you will find yourself more and more concerned with the survival of your family and less in control of your actions when it comes to protecting them.’

‘I don't really understand.’ I shook my head.

‘Well, let me tell you the rest of the story and maybe it will make things clearer.’ My father took another breath before he continued the story. ‘Remus suspected that Romulus had found out about his wife and had put a darkness inside his unborn child, Remus decided that to protect his family he would do the one thing he never thought himself capable of. He made his son into a horcrux, giving him a piece of himself so that he would always be shielded from the darkness. It was the first time this magic was ever used until Herpo the Foul several years later… what you've been hearing is what is left of Romulus and Remus.’

There was a long silence and I couldn't look at anyone for a moment, there was too much going through my mind and I couldn't quite work out what to say, I caught my parents looking at each other from the corner of my eye.

‘That… it can't be true,’ I finally croaked. ‘That kind of magic doesn't exist, it defies laws and bends magic in a way that it cannot be bent.’ I felt the disappointment flood from both of my parents. 

‘Angie, one in every generation of Lockwoods plays host to the brothers and we do so, because if we should die their souls would be released and they will have a flesh body to use as they please and you have no idea of the devastation that could cause.’ It was clear that this was an important point for my father. ‘We have no idea which brother will take over first and if that should be Romulus… the world will be thrown into a darkness that we have never seen before. We have a responsibility to the rest of the world to ensure that it is kept safe from him. The voices you are hearing are that of the brothers still fighting each other after all this time.’

‘But it's just one voice.’ I argued. ‘I can only hear one voice and it's not even fully formed. It's like it's mimicking me, trying to work out words by repeating them.’ I felt a frustration that I'd never felt before, it was an overwhelming anger that took over for just a moment. 

‘What do you mean just one?’ My mother asked, but before I could answer, my father cut in.

‘It is possible that only one of the brothers has decided to make his presence known Adrianna.’ He said firmly. ‘There is another part to the story that you should be aware of and will be of high interest to Remus and Clara… you must all understand that the timing was crucial and to achieve such a thing was as unlikely as it was devastating. When the brothers died, the she wolf that raised them cried for its adopted sons and tried to use an ancient piece of blood magic to bring them back to life, she failed and instead created monsters born out of war and pain. She created the first werewolves and was soon killed by what she made before she could do anything to stop them, our family’s petty war is responsible for your condition… the truth of it is uncertain, but it is said that the remaining piece of the brothers could feel what had happened to their remains and at the same time Remus's child was born. Lockwoods are born feeling the pain and war the brothers died in and it makes us unique in so many ways. Physically, mentally and intellectually we carry tiny remnants, the strongest aspects of the generations before us. A Lockwood gets stronger with each that is born, its uncertain why.’

Again a long silence passed over the table. I couldn't quite work out what to think first.

‘What am I supposed to say?’ I asked, I could barely feel anything, it was far too much to process. ‘What do I do? How do we fix this?’ I was begging Remus to help me.

He opened his mouth to say something, before closing it again and saying nothing.

‘Angie,’ my father said quietly, he looked incredibly pained. ‘There is no fixing it, believe me, many of us have tried, but I'm afraid there is no way to destroy the brothers. This is the curse our family lives with and I am so sorry.’

I watched my mother shift slightly and Darren suddenly spoke up.

‘You said one in every generation.’ His voice was shaky and I could see water swelling behind his eyes. He didn't dare look at anyone, but my parents both turned their attention to him. ‘I…’

‘Darren.’ My father breathed. 

‘I can hear a voice as well. Just one.’ Darren’s began pouring from him and I could feel a lump building in the back of my throat. ‘Dad, he speaks to me. For years now.’

‘No, no…’ my father began shaking and crying as well, he held my brother close to him and couldn't stop crying. ‘No, my children… my children!’ He wailed and I stood up to cry with my father and Darren. ‘I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.’ I could feel my father's strength as he shook around me. 

 

Remus put his hand over Anna’s to comfort her somewhat, he could see how much it pained her to see this happening to her children and he couldn't imagine what she was thinking. He was uncertain what to do, he wanted to hold Angelina and tell her that he could fix this, but he couldn't. Horcruxes were complex and dangerous at best, but he'd never heard of this happening to a person before.

‘George.’ Anna whimpered. George had finally managed to take a breath and stood with a hand on both his children's shoulder. ‘George they have to know.’

He nodded and took one last breath. ‘A prophecy… the she wolf died and afterwards a seer found the body… she predicted the brother’s souls would split into the two strongest warriors and…’

He couldn't finish the sentence, he couldn't stop the tears.

‘Dad, what's happening to us?’ Darren cried.

‘The brothers will kill each other again.’ Anna finished her husbands sentence and the only sounds that could be heard for the rest of the night were the sounds of each of the Lockwoods crying and questions being asked when they felt they could speak again.

Remus had begun to understand the frustration in Angelina, she was playing host to something extraordinarily powerful and it was beginning to wake up. George shared a little of his past and how he struggled to grow up with the brothers constantly fighting inside him. That was where Anna came into it, he clung on to his love for her because he knew it was one of the only pieces of himself that was truly his. 

Angelina had given Remus a look and he had begun to realise that she struggled since Reykjavik to know who she was, that she felt unlocked. The piece of the brother inside her must have woken up while she was there and that was why she was quick to anger and confused. 

They stayed awake hearing about George's struggle up until the sun had begun to rise again. Remus was exhausted, he did his best to comfort Angelina to do whatever she needed him to do, but in the back of his mind, he couldn't help but think on the story how werewolves came to be and he understood why no one knew about it. If anyone should dig any further into the story, the entirety of the brothers life and death would come to light and the Lockwoods would risk so much.

Remus finally understood why Angelina’s animagus was a wolf, if the brothers were raised by the she wolf and she passed on even a little of her magical properties onto them, that would have passed down through the generations as well. 

Remus had never seen George's patronus but he assured Remus it was a wolf, but he elected to never show it in its corporeal form in case it rose suspicion, something Angelina and Darren had never needed to think about.

He didn't want to, but Remus needed to leave soon to get back to the school, he didn't expect to be there for that long, but if the secret of the Lockwoods was to remain secret, he needed to behave as if Angelina was simply sick and was being taken care of at home.

‘Well, I hope she feels better soon.’ Poppy said while Remus downed a pepperup potion. He knew he often looked tired, but he wanted to avoid any awkward questions from students or teachers. He had a lot to think about.

 

I stayed in bed most of the day, I couldn't bring myself to say anything. I had so many questions, none of it could be true, but it provided an explanation to everything I had been going through, the frustration, the anger, the voices and even my animagus.

I thought back to something Remus had said when I was in school, about how I was born a wolf and he had been forced to be this way. He couldn't have known at the time about my supposed family history, but it did make me wonder how much people could see it in me. It made me want to hide in my research lab forever and never leave again. 

I decided that was the thing to do until I could process everything properly. I had invested in a water tank to keep the puffapods in while I researched them and as soon as I walked into the spacious room, I poured the jar into the large tank and watched how the light passed through the outer pods. It was gorgeous and I took the time to appreciate that, before sorting through my notes and moving the rest of my notebooks and cases into the room across from my bedroom.

Overall I was pleased with how my new lab was working out, it was big enough that I could start building up a library of books that I might not have found in the ministry public library, it could hold several tanks and two large work spaces. I also had a rather large balcony, where I had moved most of the plants I had previously been growing in the back garden, they now sat either in tanks filled with soil or standard plant pots.

I sat back in my chair and watched the puffapods slowly sink to the bottom of the tank which was covered in fertiliser I could use for growing more if I needed to. I threw one leg over the other, slid my glasses on and began reading through Professor Sprouts notes on what she had been doing the last few years with the puffapods.

I could hear Darren crying on and off down the hall and my mother would rush into his room to hold him. Clara needed to leave to go to work at some point and Darren had broken down the second she left.

My father on the other hand, stood at the door to my lab every so often and just watched me. I wasn't sure why I pretended not to notice, but I couldn't talk to him just yet. 

I had a feeling that Remus would have written to me during the day to see if I was alright and as soon as I needed my book I risked a glance at the back cover.

Angelina,

I hope you realise that I haven't left for good. It only just occurred to me that you might have thought that, but your father is right, if this is true we can't draw too much attention to your family’s history. Too much would be put at risk, including our relationship and that is something I could never risk, not for anything.

I can't go into too much detail on my thoughts just now as I'm currently sitting in a class and supposed to be tutoring the seventh years in preparation for their NEWTs, but I will say this. Nothing has changed. You are still the most important person in my life, I will still be there for you if you need anything and I will never leave you.

I trust you understand my discomfort at hearing how my condition came to be, but again it's something we can discuss when we have a little more time. 

Angelina, I love you, please write if you need me tonight.

Yours always

Remus

‘Angie.’ I turned to see my father at the door holding a mug of hot chocolate. He gave a small smile and carefully stepped in, handing me the mug. He sat in the spare chair I had in the corner. ‘Are you alright?’ He had a much more serious tone.

‘I don't know.’ I shook my head and sipped the chocolate, it was just the way I liked it. 

‘Well, do you want to talk about anything? I can answer your questions as best I can, but I only know so much.’ He leaned forward in the chair, trying to get me to open up, but the honest truth was that I hadn't yet processed anything.

I sighed and pushed my chair back to my desk, piling up my work and my books, before sliding my chair back to sit in front of the puffapod tank again.

‘As far as I understand it,’ I frowned, watching the puffapods swaying in the water while I spoke. ‘Romulus and Remus were two wizards who made Remus's son into a horcrux that held a piece of both their souls and each time a Lockwood is born those pieces find a new host… which doesn't make sense, I've read about horcruxes, you can't put more than one soul into an object, you can't put it into a living thing and the soul can't move onto a different object without some kind of magical force behind it… but every question I've ever had about myself is answered by my being a horcrux. My wand is two hundred and fifty years old, ten inches, elder with Phoenix feather, I was able to perform wandless and non verbal magic when I was twelve and my animagus is a wolf… my greatest fear is possession. Everything can be explained, but it defies natural law, so…’

‘So, how can it be true?’ My father nodded, finishing my sentence for me. He took a deep breath and looked at the tank with me. ‘Angie, I can't tell you how everything works and in the case of werewolves, often you tell me how it all works. I spent most of my life trying to find out how to get these people out of me, how to destroy them once and for all. In the beginning it was for selfish reasons, but soon I realised that what is inside is still a piece of someone's soul, it feels pain and anger the same as I do. I wanted to destroy the brothers to save them from further pain. I expect this is the first time in a long time they have known peace from each other, whether it is a good thing or not remains to be seen. If anyone in the world can figure this out, it's you and it's Darren. You are both so intelligent, kind and understanding. You can do this and with Remus by your side, happiness will never be far away.’ 

I smiled a little thinking on Remus's letter, he loved me.

‘Have you heard from him?’

‘He wrote me a letter when he was in class.’ I chuckled. ‘He should have been teaching, but he was worried. I'm just about to write back.’

‘Maybe you should spend some more time with him?’ My father suggested and I frowned slightly. ‘I nearly lost your mother once, a time when I didn't understand myself or what was happening and I became irrational, began pushing her away, believing that I was protecting her. But the reality is that I was only hurting her and myself. Don't make that mistake with Remus, he makes you happy and that is the most wonderful thing I could have hoped for, for my children.’ My father smiled at me and stood up. ‘I was wrong to suggest he might have been dangerous, again I thought I was protecting you, but I was only hurting you both. You know the right choices Angie, you always have, I need to stop thinking otherwise.’ He kissed the top of my head and left me in my lab for the rest of the evening.

Remus,

I never thought you'd leave me. I'm still figuring it all out, none of it makes any sense and yet it does. I need to do some thinking, but I don't want to be without you while I do. The summer holidays are just around the corner, spend them with me, help me figure this out, I'm bound to have some form of breakdown and I don't want to be without you when I do.

I spent most of the day in my lab, I couldn't think on it anymore, I needed to be distracted for a while. 

I understand the discomfort, if you feel that strongly, I can look into what sort of magic the she wolf might have used, there probably isn't a way to reverse it with a simple spell and if she failed it brings in a whole new set of factors that I would need to figure out, but if you want to see if there's some kind of hope, I can do that for you. 

Darren has been crying most of the day, I don't know what to do for him. I know I’m being selfish, but I don't know if I can talk about this until I understand a bit more. Do you think he hates me for it?

I wouldn't mind the company tonight, but there's no need if you have work to do. I know the exam period is about to begin and you need to focus on that, but I can come down to the school for the weekend if you want.

Yours 

Angelina 

Remus sat back and sighed, catching the attention of the students he had in for detention that evening. Casper was one of them, Remus was unsure of what he had done, but made him write lines all the same. He wasn't sure what to say to Angelina, she felt guilty, that much was certain, but anything else was a mystery.

‘Right, that's enough for tonight.’ Remus announced. ‘You can go.’ He carefully slid the parchment between two books and began to collect his things the same as the students who were hurrying out of the classroom.

Once they had all left, Remus took a moment in his classroom. He suddenly felt himself sit back down and he let every tear fall against his desk. What had happened to him?


	4. Italy

I spent the next few weeks in my lab, Jack had made a speech at the rights campaign this year and it went down very well, so well, that the majority vote was now fast approaching forty percent in favour, just another twenty and we’ll have done it. I was continuing my research into the puffapods and avoiding the new development in my life. I couldn't deal with it just yet and Darren had been telling me that he would be there as soon as I wanted to talk about it. 

Darren had decided to resign with the Falmouth Falcons and leave Japan. The official story was that he had won the league and was happy with his achievements, he wanted to be closer to his family. Part of it was true, he was getting tired of travelling back and forth to see Clara all the time and he did miss home while he was away. 

Remus had been at the house more often and usually just sat in the corner of my lab marking essays and going over the exam papers. I didn't mind the company and in fact I enjoyed finding a fresh cup of tea every so often when I went back to my desk. I still heard the voice whispering in the back of my mind occasionally, but simply ignored it and absorbed myself in my work until it stopped.

I knew Remus could see I was suffering and the day before we went to Italy for a few weeks with my friends, I told him how I felt.

‘I feel like I'm going insane.’ I said. It was getting late and Remus was marking the exam papers at his desk in the corner, ready to be sent back to Hogwarts that night. He looked up at me and waited for me to continue. ‘The voice is getting more… I can hear him more often.’

I didn't stop working while I spoke, I just continued to crush the leaves of the Moondew I had begun growing and waited for Remus's reply.

‘What does he say?’

I turned to Remus and could see how hurt he was that this was happening to me. I just shook my head. ‘Sometimes I don't know, it's just an annoying mumbling in the back of my mind, other times he just repeats things… he calls out for me sometimes, like he's calling for me to help him.’

‘Do you respond?’ Remus had put his quill down and turned all of his attention to me.

‘No, I don't know which brother is inside of me, I don't want to risk it being Romulus.’ I sighed and felt exasperated with myself. ‘I'm still struggling to believe that it might be true.’ I finally admitted and Remus looked nothing but concerned. ‘I was eight the first time my dad told me I was special, twelve when you said I was extraordinary, fifteen when Dumbledore said I had unwavering loyalty and the minister looked me in the eye and said he expected great things in my future. I was seventeen when three schools looked at me like I was the best thing they'd ever seen, like some kind of hero. I was eighteen and a whole race of people thanked me for saving them… I'm nineteen and my dad tells me I'm a horcrux, that I have to protect the world from a darkness like we've never seen before. What am I supposed to do with that?’

I looked to Remus and his face was unreadable. I didn't know what he was thinking.

‘Some people in this life,’ Remus stood and brought his chair to sit next to me and watch the sun descending in the sky. ‘Are born for a particular purpose. Most often that purpose is to bring joy to their parents, to help make two people feel more like a family, to bring them closer together… and sometimes people are born to do great things, these people are the ones who go through the most hardship, the most pain and suffering, they often feel themselves inadequate of the task ahead and that they are worth less than the people around them. But these are also the people presented with challenges that the rest of us could not possibly hope to face. They are the bravest among us, the most intelligent, the most capable to do what needs to be done… these people also know better than anyone the value of a life that isn't by most standards extraordinary, it's what makes them fight harder. I can't say for certain what lies ahead of you, but I can say that you are surrounded by people who love you more than you could imagine. Whatever you think you can't do, whatever you believe is too far for you to reach, you will always have people behind you to ask for help.’

I watched Remus's blue eyes skim over the horizon and a small smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. Why was he always so levelled headed? 

‘Knowledge and determination, they have always been your greatest assets.’ Remus continued. ‘As long as you continue to work for what makes you happiest, you will find the right path. I’m certain of it.’

I smiled and remembered the last time he said that to me, I had been panicking that I would never see him again and he knew exactly what to say to calm me down and get me to see reason. ‘I don't know what to say.’ 

Remus chuckled slightly. ‘Tell me how you feel, there's no rule book, you just say how you feel.’

I took a breath. ‘You're very level headed, calm and you say the wisest things that it's no wonder I thought you were older than you are.’ Remus smiled his easy smile again. ‘You're handsome and brave and smart and sometimes I feel undeserving of such things. I feel like I owe you everything I have for not letting me be alone, we haven't said anything over the last few weeks, but you've sat in the corner of my lab and waited until I was ready. You didn't push anything, you didn't ask me if I was ready, you just waited. You had patience and it seems that I'm asking that of you more and more, I wonder if the day will ever come when you run out of patience for me.’

Remus still smiled to himself and shook his head slightly. ‘Patience is my strongest attribute, I would have thought that obvious by now. I have all the patience in the world where you're concerned.’

It had taken me up until that moment to realise the last time I kissed Remus was just after the Easter holidays. 

He turned to me and his glance drifted towards my lips just slightly, I felt my mouth pull up into a smile as he carefully leaned over to press a light kiss to my lips. It was warm and soft and it felt so good, I could feel myself not wanting him to stop and he didn't. Remus's hand came up to stroke my cheek and he sighed into me.

We stayed like that for a moment, just feeling each other for a while, before we needed to get back to work and get ready for the big adventure the next day. 

 

We caught a portkey to a very modern looking magical resort in Sicily and spent a few days sunbathing. David had been doing his best to keep Jack occupied while Cassie and I went swimming in the deep blue ocean as much as possible, Remus seemed to prefer the shade of the resort with Benji and I wondered on occasion if he was bored. Jocelyne wanted to watch the stars on a couple of the nights and I offered to stay up with her, remembering my promise to Benji who gave me a quick wink as he and Remus went to the rooms.

‘What was the wink?’ Remus asked quietly with a smirk on his face.

I shook my head laughing. ‘I'll tell you later. We shouldn't be up too late, Jocelyne said she only wanted to watch one of the stars, no idea which one, but I'm sure it'll be interesting all the same.’

‘Well, stay safe and enjoy yourself.’ Remus gave me a quick kiss and left to go to bed.

The night was an enjoyable one, Jocelyne and I stayed up a little later than intended, but she did gather some good data at least.

‘Professor Sinistra has asked me to go back to Hogwarts to teach the fifth years for a couple weeks.’ Jocelyne said as we began to wind down. I didn't want to bother her too much as she was absorbed in her work, so spent most of the night reading up on the story of Romulus and Remus. ‘It'll be nice to see the school again.’

‘Remus says it's not changed since he was at school, it was pretty nostalgic any time I've visited.’ I said, taking another swig of my butterbeer. Jocelyne came and sat next to me, she'd finished her study and looked extremely relaxed. ‘So how's married life?’

It was the familiar smile, the one from the year before when Benji had asked her to marry him. ‘Amazing, Benji is so great, I mean, with everything happening so fast I was almost waiting for him to get sick of me, but he's been so kind throughout everything. He's made all these plans, he wants children, but not until we’re both ready, he wants a bigger house when we can afford it and he's even talking about building me my own observatory.’

‘Wow, that sounds like a lot.’

‘It is and I'm so excited that he wants that for us.’

I frowned slightly. ‘Why do I sense a ‘but’ coming along?’

Jocelyne shook her head. ‘I wonder sometimes that because everything happened so fast that we’re still in the honeymoon period.’ My frown deepened a little. ‘You remember when David and Cassie started seeing each other and he couldn't stop talking about her and was constantly kissing her when she was around?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Well, he doesn't do that as much anymore because they've gotten used to being around each other…’ I still wasn't quite grasping the concept and she could see it. ‘Wow, Remus needs to teach you so much about relationships.’ She laughed and finished her own butterbeer.

We continued talking for a while until it was definitely time for us to go to bed, I managed to get the information for Benji and I thought I did a good job of doing it subtly. Remus woke up a little as I entered the room and I was pleased to find he was just in his underwear. I got changed in near darkness and felt the refreshing, cool breeze against my legs before sliding into bed next to Remus.

‘How was it?’ He mumbled as I settled against his chest.

‘It was good… educational.’ I smiled and felt Remus chuckle.

‘Does that mean you've got questions for me?’ He sighed and I felt myself go still. 

‘How did you know?’

‘Jocelyne is the complete opposite of you,’ Remus was definitely waking up a bit more and a part of me felt bad. ‘Very social and very good at building relationships with people. You always have questions when you speak to her… I don't mind Angelina, she often helps to remind me that being in a relationship with you is like nothing I've experienced before.’

‘Because I don't know anything?’ I didn't mean to sound quite as irritated as I did, but it forced Remus to take a breath and sit up. He waved his hand toward the lights and I could see just how tired he was.

‘Angelina, I didn’t mean it the way I said it, I'm just tired. You know more than you think you do.’ He said, still adjusting so we could have a conversation. ‘You know what you want, you know what I want and you know what is possible for us, it's just the terminology you're not familiar with. It's just about the only thing I can teach you anymore and it is a great joy to do so. I'm not suggesting anything other than that… don't let it upset you, it's not worth it.’ 

I crossed my legs and watched Remus waking up a little more. ‘She said she's worried she and Benji are still in the honeymoon period.’

Remus closed his eyes and nodded in understanding. He took a breath. ‘It's a period of time when two people get together where everything is particularly… exciting. They are getting to know each other physically, emotionally and intellectually and when those things begin to match up in the way that both parties enjoy, it makes them feel more attracted to each other. After a while it fades and either they get bored of each other, or they simply get used to being around each other.’

It made some sense. ‘Are we in that period of time?’

Remus sighed and thought about it. ‘Sometimes I feel a little sorry for you. We aren't exactly a conventional pairing. Any relationship I might've had was always going to be slightly more complex due to my condition, your inability to process social situations would mean you might not have known quite how to deal with anyone you found attractive. These two things happen to be the two things we can cancel out for each other, I don't need to worry about you not accepting me for who I am and you don't have to worry about not being able to express yourself properly. Does that make sense?’

I nodded. ‘My dad taught me about werewolves so I never looked at them any differently to anyone else and you know how I feel and have endless patience so I can take all the time I need to figure out how I feel, because it'll only confirm what you already know?’ I was fairly certain I could follow the logic.

‘Exactly.’ Remus smiled and I could see his happiness at my progress. ‘Now, because of these factors, it makes labelling things like ‘honeymoon period’ especially difficult. What I will say is that we are definitely in the beginning stages of our relationship, there is still a long journey ahead of us and no rush to get there until we’re both ready.’

‘You mean things like marriage?’ I frowned.

I could see Remus's cheeks go pink as he cleared his throat. ‘Marriage isn't the ultimate goal of a relationship, its often what people choose to do for a variety of different reasons. In Jocelyne and Benji’s case it was to show their commitment to love each other, but they’re just one example of what love looks like, not the ultimate goal. Do you understand what I'm saying?’

‘I think so.’ I nodded and surprisingly felt better about the whole thing. 

‘Good, any more questions?’

I wasn't sure whether to bother asking, but I did have one more question. ‘Are you bored here?’

Remus frowned and held my hand. ‘Of course not, what makes you think I'm bored?’

‘I just…’ I shrugged, not quite knowing what my follow up was. ‘I wasn't sure if you stayed inside with Benji for a reason that you didn't want to say or if maybe you'd prefer to be back in the castle.’ 

To my surprise Remus began laughing and for a moment it made me join in. ‘I'm sorry, it's an honest question.’ He said, just about calming down enough to speak. ‘Look at me, I have scars all over my body, how many people do you think I want seeing that?’ I frowned a little. ‘You might not think anything of it, but you're used to it and that has been a great bravery on my part to allow you the time to do that. If I worked in the care of magical creatures I could pass them off as accidents from teaching, but I don't, I spend most of my time in a classroom and not a lot of it investigating dangerous creatures. People would begin asking questions and I'd rather not deal with that while I'm trying to enjoy my time off.’

It was something I hadn't really taken into account before and it suddenly dawned on me how self conscious Remus might have been about the way he looked. I thought he was fine and that he had nothing to be ashamed of, but as we had already established, my point of view wasn't exactly conventional. I did enjoy the fact that I was someone he trusted enough to show that part of him without any insecurity.

‘There we go, you’ve got it.’ Remus watched me go through the logic in my head and he smiled when I reached my conclusion.

‘How do you that?’ I exclaimed, laughing a little. ‘You always know what I'm thinking without even trying.’

‘Not always.’ Remus shook his head and gently pulled me into a hug. ‘But I have spent the better part of eight years watching you work things out, I know when you do and don't get things and the rest is just logic.’ I chuckled at that bit and took the opportunity to feel his heart beating beneath my ear for a few minutes. ‘You make me happy and I'm currently half way towards wanting to show you that in a much more physical sense, however, I'm exhausted. Can we go to sleep?’

I couldn't help my laugh and nodded, settling down to finally go to sleep.

 

Remus woke first and, like he had done so many times over the past year, he took the opportunity to inhale the sweet, light smell that was Angelina. He could feel himself growing uncomfortable in his underwear and a part of him hoped she would wake soon and help him deal with it properly. 

It was very late when Angelina had finally come to bed and Remus suddenly remembered the conversation they'd had about their relationship, he was glad to see she had gotten a much better grasp on things than when they first started.

He could feel her turning to rest against his chest, it was doing nothing for how uncomfortable he felt, but then as he inhaled, he could feel her smiling and running her fingers over his hips.

‘That feels good.’ He whispered into her hair.

‘Good.’ She mumbled back and he fell into the familiar warmth that was Angelina.

They eventually showered and got ready to head down for breakfast when Remus had a thought on something one of his students had said before the end of the year. He put his dark green linen shirt on and opened the book he'd given to Angelina to investigate his thought, but found it was already filled with what she had been reading the night before. 

It only caught Remus's attention when he read his name on one of the pages; it was the story of the brothers, Angelina had been reading the story and clearly been investigating what it meant for herself. Remus sighed as he realised that the whole ordeal had gotten to her more than she let on and that she still felt she couldn't talk about it. He thought about writing to her father, but decided against it in case she opened up on her own.

Remus and Angelina went down for breakfast and a couple of days later they moved their holiday onto the mainland of Italy. The seven of them toured around Venice, Milan and soon Pompeii. 

He often felt the age gap between himself and the rest of the group, but he was lucky that Jocelyne recognised it immediately and made sure he cheered up a bit, either by handing him some form of drink or engaging him in discussion about whatever museum they were in.

‘It's terrible that all those muggles died like that.’ She said, holding Benji's hand as they wandered around the ruins of Pompeii. Remus had lost Angelina when someone pointed out something vaguely intriguing in another direction and Jocelyne had found him and Benji near an old brothel, something she teased them about. ‘I suppose it was just such a huge natural disaster that there was nothing that could have been done.’

‘We lost a lot of witches and wizards to it as well.’ Remus said, remembering what he'd read back in one of the magical museums. ‘The smoke and ash descended so quickly there was nothing anyone could do to escape quick enough.’ He watched as Benji put his arm around his wife and tried to cheer her up a bit. ‘May I ask a slightly personal question?’ Remus suddenly spoke up.

‘Sure.’ Jocelyne nodded, curiously.

‘Wait, who are you talking to? Jocelyne or me?’ Benji cut in.

‘Jocelyne.’ Remus confirmed.

‘Then yes, carry on.’ He smiled jokingly and left Remus and Jocelyne to wander around for a few minutes.

‘Classic man.’ Jocelyne shook her head knowing how he could be. 

‘You both seem very happy though.’ 

‘Very, he's always been very good to me, even when we were at school.’ Jocelyne had a look that said she was remembering her time at school.

Remus smiled vaguely and thought on his question. ‘Does Angelina talk to you a lot about our relationship? About things she might not want to talk to me about?’

Jocelyne smiled a little, rolling her eyes and shook her head. ‘Angie is a strange creature, as I'm sure you've worked out.’ Remus chuckled, knowing exactly what Jocelyne was talking about. ‘She writes to me about you sometimes, not really asking questions, but more letting me know she isn't sure what something means and then telling me about whatever she's researching now, some anti flame thing?’

‘Anti flaring for my condition.’ Remus nodded. ‘A student became infected before she came to Hogwarts last year and wants to try out for the quidditch team, but with the nature of our condition, any injury she sustains during matches will return tenfold during transformation and believe me that can be a more torturous event than the actual transformation itself.’

Jocelyne had a more pitiful look in her eye when Remus finished speaking. ‘I'm sorry, I forget sometimes that you go through this every month.’

‘Don't be.’ Remus shook his head. ‘Angelina has made everything so much better for people like me. I was used to the pain, but I was reminded by this young girl that not everyone is quite as lucky.’

‘Forgive me Remus, but it still sounds horrendous.’

Remus sighed and they stopped walking to rest in the shade. ‘It can be, but imagine going through something so terrible alone, I no longer have to and I have the added benefit of being able to help others like me.’

‘You're a good man, everyone always said so when we were at school.’ Jocelyne stared out at the ruins of the city around her. ‘I think Angie has made you better. You look much more confident in yourself and not as tired.’ That made Remus laugh. ‘Angie is so lucky to have found you, I remember you helping me with the shield charm when I was studying for my exams, you showed me how to do it and said that it took something more than simply saying the words, that you had to really want it.’ Remus had a vague memory of the day, but was aware that these events were much more important to students than they were to him. ‘Angie tells me that you treat her like an equal, but also that she doesn't feel like your equal when she doesn't understand things that come so easy to you.’

Remus sighed. ‘It's the social aspects of life she's never excelled in and it frustrates her, I'm sure you've seen it. I'm trying my best to rectify that, but as you're aware my position in her life only allows me do so much before it becomes overwhelming for her.’

It took Jocelyne a moment to respond. ‘You're really in love with her aren't you?’ Remus smiled to himself and nodded. It was a little strange talking to one of his ex students in this way, but then his entire life had been a little strange. ‘I always thought you just fancied the arse off her, most people do.’ It pulled a laugh from both Jocelyne and Remus. ‘I mean, I was always jealous of that body of hers and those gorgeous eyes. Please tell me she looks terrible naked and it's all just some illusion?’ Remus's face began to turn pink, before Jocelyne quickly added: ‘Wait, unless you guys haven't… you know? Wait, do I want to know? You've gone red.’

Remus cleared his throat. ‘I'm sorry to disappoint, but it's not an illusion.’

‘So lucky.’ Jocelyne shook her head pretending to be annoyed and Remus had to laugh at her. ‘What is that even like?! Does even know how it all works? Or why? Oh god, I knew I should have had the talk with her!’ Jocelyne groaned and Remus felt a joyful exasperation he often felt with Lily. 

‘Well, I can't deny everything would have been slightly easier for me if you had.’ Remus joked and Jocelyne broke down into a fit of giggles. ‘This was one of the things I was asking about actually, not directly, but I just wanted to know how much she actually talks about things with anyone.’

Jocelyne took a breath. ‘I'll be honest, I think you're the one she talks to the most. Most of us only ever got little snaps here and there when we tried to talk to her about feelings. I think David got the closest, said they talked during the summer before seventh year about the fact she liked you, but David said he wasn't even sure if that's what she was admitting to.’

‘She told you about the conversation in my office?’

Jocelyne rolled her eyes as if it was obvious he had. ‘We’re not stupid, we'd never tell anyone anything, I don't think even Cassie knows. You know you risked a lot for her?’

‘I know.’ Remus sighed thinking on how his life might have been if anyone had found out they even talked about their feelings for each other. 

‘But she's worth it right?’ Jocelyne was so much easier to communicate with than Angelina, it was refreshing for Remus not to have to finish a sentence and for the other person to get it. ‘I know what you mean, like I said before, Angie is so special, I don't think she quite realises the things we'd do for her.’

‘Nothing less than what she would do for you.’ Remus agreed.

Remus and Jocelyne eventually got up and found the others inside another ruin with Jack and Angelina being the central entertainers as usual and Remus felt his heart lift a little. His talk with Jocelyne had both revitalised his love for Angelina but also his worry. If he was the one she opened up to most, then she was keeping a lot of things locked up inside and the last time that happened he sat across from her in Dumbledore’s office and couldn't bare the pain on her face or tears she shed for him.

 

The holiday had come to an end and everyone was about to leave to head back home, I wanted to stay though, just for a few more days and go exploring in the Alban Hills, I'd read that that was where the brothers were born and maybe there was something left for me to find out about them, Remus was understandably a little worried for me.

‘I'll be fine, I just want to see if there's anything left of their home.’ I said, waving my wand to send everything into my rucksack.

‘But can you at least see why I'm asking you to wait a while?’ Remus implored, sitting on the edge of the bed and trying to keep his temper. ‘The full moon will come up tonight, I have to be back at the castle, I can't come with you.’ I was aware that the Italian full moon would occur the night after the one in England and Remus would have to stay until it passed, but even after that he would be too tired to make the trip with me.

‘What about Darren?’ I tried to compromise. ‘What if I ask him to come with me?’

‘You can't ask him to do that.’ Remus half laughed. ‘Angelina, he's not taken this as well as you have, you have to think about what this might do to him, seeing what's really inside of him might do more damage than good.’

‘Then I don't have a choice, I have to go alone.’ I stated.

‘Why?! Why do you have to do this now?!’ Remus's voice was gradually getting louder and louder and I hated it.

‘Because it's my life!’ I shouted back. ‘This is my life now! This is how I will live for the rest of my life and I need to understand what is going on! It's not a discussion Remus, I'm going!’

We both turned to the door, hearing it creak a little as Jack entered, unsure of what he should have done. ‘Sorry, but the portkey leaves in six minutes.’ He said and I felt my breath go.

‘I'll be there in a moment.’ Remus said, rather dismissively. Jack just nodded and left, giving me a tight smile as he did. ‘Angelina, I know that this it, I know that you have accepted that this will be your life now and I am trying to show you that I will support you and give you everything I can to help along the way. But please try and see why I am worried about you making any kind of discovery about this alone. I would never forgive myself if you got hurt, but hate myself if I'm not there to help you when it's over… you told me you could do anything if I was there to hold you when you got hurt and I believe that. I'm just trying to keep my promise.’

I took a deep breath and tried to understand, but it was difficult. ‘Maybe this is something I need to do on my own. If it's true and there is a darkness inside me, you holding me when I cry isn’t going to do anything to stop it, I need to learn to be strong on my own so that when you're there I'm even stronger. I believe that.’

Remus sighed and quickly checked his watch. ‘I have to go. I understand what you're saying, I still don't agree, but your logic makes sense. I'm in no condition to argue or even know if what I'm saying is the right thing… please be careful, come to the castle when you're done, tell me what you find and let me feel like I'm helping at least?’

I nodded and realised that this was the first time we'd ever argued, it felt like a victory though, like we could discuss and compromise and I had hope for the future we had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts?


	5. The Alban Hills

My journey to the Alban Hills had been a little more rigorous than I expected. I still wasn't the best climber and it seemed to get a little rockier with every step. I apparated where I could and tried to stick to the same routes as everyone else, but it was still difficult.

‘Keep climbing!’ It was the brother. He had been strangely quiet during my trip to Italy and it had made me a little suspicious. I did my best to ignore him, to keep moving up and towards where I could see a small settlement built into the mountainside, but it seemed the closer I got, the more excited the voice became. ‘You're close. So close.’

‘Will you shut up!’ I hissed, feeling my body ache with the climb and my mind becoming more frustrated. I stopped and leaned against a nearby rock. I did everything I could to gulp down more air and clear my mind of the extra activity. 

‘Keep moving Angie. Don't stop.’

‘Shut up! Just shut up!’ I panted and silence washed over my mind, but I could still feel the voice lingering, waiting to catch me off guard again. 

It wasn't much further, I could do it. Just keep moving.

 

‘Remus, how was the trip?’ Poppy had asked the moment he stepped through the castle doors.

‘Oh, fine, just fine.’ Remus nodded, feeling the aches flare slightly.

Poppy handed him the wolfsbane and he immediately felt the flaring cool. He knew there was a pile of work waiting for him in his office and a part of him was eager to get it done for the sake of distraction, the other part wanted to burn every piece of parchment in the castle.

‘Sorry, Poppy, I'm just tired.’ Remus suddenly said, realising that she was wearing her concerned expression, the same one she had for all her students. 

‘Remus, we are well used to your moods by now,’ she smiled. ‘Go and rest and I'll see that you're fit as a fiddle in the morning.’ Remus nodded and handed her back the goblet. 

It was difficult to concentrate on the work in front of him, the only thing playing on his mind was the argument he had had with Angelina. She was as determined as ever to go to the Alban Hills, nothing was going to stop her and it put a fear in Remus he hadn't felt in a long time. He thought back to the sorting hat's words from the year before. A Great War was coming, everyone could feel it without being told, something was shifting just out of sight. 

Remus wasn't sure what part Angelina would play in any war that might come, but he was certain that given the chance she would be on the front line fighting harder than anyone. He could feel his body becoming uncomfortable and decided to leave his work for the night and head into his bedroom for the transformation. It would be a bad one, but luckily for him, that only meant it would be frustrating. He was glad that he no longer had to endure the agony a full moon once brought him, Angelina would never fully understand how much he adored her for it.

 

I was finally there, it was far too late at night for me to still be wandering around, but I didn't care. It was like there was a vibration at the back of my mind, not a buzzing exactly, just the excitement the brother was feeling at being close to his home.

‘Is this it?’ I'm not sure what made me ask, but the brother hissed a yes and I continued to wander through the settlement that appeared to be abandoned. It looked like whoever lived there had cleared out years before. It was just broken buildings and torn statues that lay scattered around me, I could see that they were covered in strange symbols, but I'd never seen anything like them before. I couldn’t feel anything dark about the settlement and decided to set up camp in one of the buildings on the edge. If there was a reason the people had cleared out, I didn't want to be caught off guard by it.

I had a small brain wave and decided to sleep in my animagus form, it was safer, less attractive to anything that might be looking for me.

 

The sun began shining through the broken windows and I stretched out yawning, but was suddenly reminded of how I had slept when I heard myself making dog like sounds. I didn't risk changing from my wolf form back just yet, instead I wandered out of the building and found I was still very much alone in the settlement. Nothing was there.

‘It is protected.’ The voice whispered in the back of my mind. I changed back and began packing away my tent.

‘Protected by what?’ I found myself asking. I felt insanity take hold.

‘Magic.’

‘Well, that's specific isn't it? Any particular kind of magic?’

It was a moment before the voice responded and it was only when I got outside again that it did.

‘Blood magic.’ He hissed and if I didn't know any better, I'd say the voice was smiling. 

I suddenly had a sinking feeling that I shouldn't have spent the night, I should never have come to the Alban Hills. Remus was right.

‘Blood magic, fantastic.’ I rolled my eyes at the image of talking to myself and decided to explore the settlement and see if there was anything left. ‘Did you grow up here?’ 

‘I was born here.’ The voice said and it had calmed down notably since the climb. 

‘So this is where the she-wolf raised you?’

‘Yes.’ 

I found a few older buildings that clearly played host to boggarts and doxys at best, but I could definitely hear the sounds of other creatures lurking in the shadows and I decided to leave them alone. 

It was beginning to become clear that there was nothing here. It was just some old buildings and a few statues of soldiers that had once lived there and I was becoming exhausted.

‘Any help would be appreciated.’ I snapped at the voice and I distinctly felt him sighing.

‘What help?’

‘Well, you can start by telling me where I should be looking.’ I stopped in front of a statue of a wolf and presumed it was the she-wolf that had once lived here.

‘For what?’

‘I don’t know!’ I snapped. ‘Anything! Anything that explains how to get you out of me!’

I sat down on a fallen pillar and looked out at the rising sun, it was beautiful and I could feel the voice taking it in as well.

‘I cannot leave.’ He said.

‘Why not?’

‘Romulus.’ It was said with a hatred I had never heard before.

I swallowed realising what this meant. ‘You're Remus aren't you? You're the one that turned your son into a horcrux.’

‘I did what I had to, to protect my family from the darkness.’

‘From your brother?’

‘Yes.’ I could feel the voice beginning to tire.

‘It's a lot of work isn't it? For you to communicate with me, I mean?’

‘It gets easier. You will be strong soon.’

‘What does that mean?’ 

‘I must rest.’

‘No, no, you don't get to rest until you tell me how I'm supposed to live with you inside me?!’ The echo sounded all around the mountains and suddenly the voice was gone, I was entirely alone.

I slumped back down on the pillar and felt the frustration pull in my chest. There had to be something here, something left of the brothers that could be used to destroy them. I pulled out my detector watch in case I was still around when the full moon came out and slipped my sneakoscope around my neck, as an extra precaution. It didn't look like anyone had been to the settlement in decades, but Remus would be angry if I didn't take every precaution I could while I was there.

I didn't know what my next move was. Did I go further up the mountain? Or try to figure out what all the symbols on the buildings meant?

 

Remus had been awake for nearly an hour and hated the sun streaking across his bed. It made him feel greasy over his skin, it had been a bad night and looked to be a depressing morning. He reached for his wand and closed the heavy curtains, the lights came up so that he could see where he was reaching for his watch. It was getting close to the mid afternoon and Remus could feel the dull ache in his head from the late sleep in.

Remus slowly manoeuvred his heavy and stiff body so that he sat on the edge of the bed, he could see the goblet on the chest next to his bed and lifted himself to drink the Silvermint Tea. It made him feel so much better, like a new energy he desperately needed.

Unfortunately he'd caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. Remus had taken to not wearing anything during the transformation as he felt his ability to afford new clothes every time, might have worn thin. He often regretted the decision at times like this where he could see himself and all of his scars.

For whatever reason, Remus stepped a little closer, observing the scar on his side from a his accident with the hippogriff years ago. It was ugly and jagged. It looked as if something had tried to cut him and gotten caught on his insides, making the incision curve and bend slightly. But that wasn't what caught Remus's eye, it was only looking at himself in the full light of his bedroom, that he noticed that a scar he distinctly remembered getting from a late night fight with a centaur when he was still in school, was no longer there.

Remus finished the last few drops of his tea and stepped right up to the mirror. He pulled slightly at the skin over his hip, but it was no good, the scar appeared to be gone. 

‘Oh, I'm so sorry!’ Poppy exclaimed, as she opened the door a crack to find Remus reaching out for a towel to cover himself.

‘Poppy.’ Remus wrapped the towel around his waist and felt his face flood red.

‘I'm so sorry, Remus.’ She said again. ‘I thought you were already up.’

‘It's fine, Poppy.’ Remus rolled his eyes, wishing she would just leave, before remembering he'd asked for a second dose of Silvermint Tea when he anticipated the rough night. ‘I was just… nevermind.'

‘I'll leave your tea on the desk.’ She said and backed away from Remus's room as quickly as she could go. Well that was humiliating.

Remus had avoided the hospital wing for most of the day and tried his best to recover as quickly as he could so that he'd be ready to see Angelina. In reality, he had no idea if she was still in the Alban Hills, or if she was even safe. He had written her a short letter the night before asking her to keep him updated on anything she might have found or want to ask him about, as well as writing to her that afternoon when he woke up, to tell her about the strange occurrence with his scar.

There was the usual staff meeting that evening and luckily Poppy was working in the hospital wing, so he wouldn't have to see her and risk further embarrassment, though he was fairly certain Mcgonagall had been made aware of that afternoon’s incident.

 

I knew I'd chosen to continue with Ancient Runes for a reason. I didn't fancy staying high up in the mountains when the full moon came out that night, so did everything I could to either take pictures of the symbols on the buildings or draw the simple ones I found in more than one location. I didn't have any time to actually look anything up before I could see the sun lowering in the sky.

I'd rented a broom from a shop at the bottom of the hills and was grateful that I did. I didn't fancy my chances at trying to climb back down the mountain once I'd finished. I managed to find a room in a small pub at the base of the mountain, and sat down with a butterbeer in the corner booth to begin researching what I'd found.

Angelina,

Even if it just a word, please, tell me you're okay?

Remus

I knew that tone. Remus was angry that I hadn't kept my word to update him frequently throughout the day.

Remus,

I'm fine, I've got some stuff to research properly when I get home. There was no danger and I'm currently sitting in a pub until I can get a portkey back home.

I hope you're well and I hope the moon wasn't too hard on you.

Yours

Angelina

‘Angie!’ The voice was back and it made my skin crawl. ‘Angie, something's wrong.’

I sighed and quickly checked for anyone watching me before I said: ‘It's a full moon, I'm not staying out in the middle of nowhere tonight.’ 

‘No, right now. Something's wrong with the room.’ 

I frowned and looked up, taking in the room a little more carefully and the brother was right. There was at least three or four wizards in a group all keeping an eye on me out of the corner of their eye.

‘Dark wizards!’ The voice hissed.

I wasn't about to draw an unnecessary amount of attention to myself, so decided to just get on with my research and wait for a reply from Remus. It was another few minutes before I felt something buzzing against my chest. The sneakoscope.

‘Angie!’

‘Shh!’ I whispered heavily and cleared my throat, lifting my head slightly to see the four wizards making no attempt to hide the fact that they were staring at me.

I rolled my eyes and quickly added a message for Remus to read.

Four dark wizards in the pub at the base of the mountain. All of them staring at me, the brother is getting agitated. What do I do?

 

The staff meeting had been longer than Remus expected and he was exhausted by the end of it. There was only two weeks until the students came back for the start of term and Remus still had so much work to do. He had maybe five or six recommendations to write for former students who had asked, letters from Clara, James and Lily and his father to catch up on, a new exam paper to write for the first years and that just looked like what was on top of the pile.

He looked at the clock which read nine-thirty and figured he'd at least get himself set up for the next day, when he could wake up early and get things done. Remus managed to at least get everything split into piles and prioritised, but by the time he'd finished it was nearly one in the morning and it was pitch black outside.

He briefly thought that there wasn't much point in checking the parchment, Angelina probably won't have written so late into the night, but for whatever reason he did it anyway.

Remus ran as fast as he could out of the castle towards the main gates, he'd sped past Dumbledore who for a moment went after Remus, but stopped at the castle doors.

The only thing on Remus's mind was apparating to the Alban Hills which was extremely dangerous at best, but it seemed he wouldn't need to. Outside the gates, a giant wolf was staggering towards him. Remus stopped for a moment, a part of him wondering if it really was her, he got his answer when the wolf finally couldn't stand anymore and fell to floor, turning into Angelina's lifeless body.

It was a familiar and unwelcome feeling for Remus to be carrying Angelina towards the hospital wing, he couldn't stand it, but would never leave her alone for any reason.

‘Poppy!’ Remus yelled and put Angelina down on the nearest bed. ‘Poppy!’ He shouted even louder and soon he could hear the sounds of the matron waking up. ‘Angelina, Angelina, can you here me? I'm here.’ Remus did his best to help Poppy by taking Angelina's rucksack and anything extra she didn't need like her wand, sneakoscope and watches. ‘Poppy!’ Remus shouted with much more urgency. 

‘What happened?’ The matron came rushing out from behind her office to where Angelina still lay unconscious.

‘I'm not sure, she may have been attacked by a group of wizards.’ Remus panted, realising just how much it had taken out of him.

Dumbledore had appeared at one point and asked what had happened and soon it got to the point that Remus couldn't do any more than he already had. He'd gotten every potion and every book Poppy had asked for, but nothing seemed to explain why Angelina was still unconscious. She had no visible wounds, save a few cuts and bruises from climbing. She should have woken up.

George had come rushing into the hospital wing and helped Poppy do everything they could to get Angelina conscious again. George seemed to be doing slightly more random things, but Remus didn't question it. He knew more about his daughter than Poppy did and knew if something better would work.

Remus soon found himself falling asleep against the bed next to Angelina's, and for a moment, he thought he could feel someone helping him up onto the bed so he could sleep properly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I aimed to add a bit of humour to the story with Poppy. Did it work?


	6. White Room

It was like trying to hear through water, the dull smog of sleep not quite shifting out of the way, but I did my best.

‘Why her?’ 

‘She isn't that great.’

I couldn't tell who was speaking. 

‘I don't know, she's kind of pretty… in a way.’

‘She won the Triwizard tournament.’

‘Yeah, but it's not like he couldn't do better.’

Where they talking about me and Remus? 

‘Rumour has it, he's after Madame Pomfrey now anyway.’

‘I heard that as well, apparently she saw him naked during the summer and they've started seeing each other.’

‘No way.’

‘Lupin doesn't seem the type. It seems cruel.’

‘He's here everyday anyway, he wouldn't do that for just anyone.’

‘Well, that's okay, you can have his scraps if you like.’

Wait, Remus and Poppy? It was definitely a group of women talking that much was clear.

‘Don't you all have anything better to do?’ Remus.

‘Sorry sir… we were worried about your wife.’ It didn't sound particularly genuine.

‘Your concern has been noted, but if you're found anywhere near this bed again, you will be in detention for several weeks.’ That seemed harsh. ‘We have no idea what's really going on here and you are putting yourselves at risk by staying here.’ 

What did that mean? I was just recovering wasn't I?

‘Sorry Professor Lupin.’ 

‘You have studying to do and I expect your first essays to be above average.’ Remus was annoyed, maybe upset, he wouldn't have been so harsh otherwise. I could hear the sound of the group walking away and presumably Remus shuffling closer to my bed. ‘Is there something else I can do for you Miss Appleby?’

‘No sir, your wife is very pretty and I'm sorry that they were all saying she wasn't.’

‘That's quite alright-‘

‘It's not really. They all think you could better.’

Did Remus just laugh at that?

‘Believe me, no man could do better than her.’ He must have been tired. ‘The deadline for the essay has been brought forward by a day… make sure your friends are aware.’

‘Yes sir.’

It was a moment before I heard the sound of Remus sighing and sitting down next to me. His warm hand slid over mine and I could feel the smog beginning to clear.

‘Angelina, please wake up.’ Was he crying? ‘Please, I can't keep doing this. You have to wake up.’

The thick air of unconsciousness was clearing, I was so close to waking up. I was there.

‘Angie!’ It was the brother. ‘You're not ready, you're not well enough yet.’

‘I have to see Remus.’

The smog was clear and I could feel my eyes opening. ‘Remus.’ It came out as a whisper, scratching up out of my throat.

‘Poppy!’ Remus yelled and I could see him coming into view. ‘Angelina.’ I wasn't sure I'd ever seen him so happy.

For some unknown reason, I felt an overwhelming anger towards Remus, was he really with Poppy now? Did he really think I wasn't good enough for him? Could he do better than me?

‘Angie, you're back.’ The matron came into view and I could feel myself struggling to get air into my lungs. ‘How do you feel?’ I couldn't breathe enough to speak and soon I could feel myself sinking further and further down, back through the smog of unconsciousness.

 

It was a clean expansive white room, a clean white bed beneath me and clean white sheets covering me. I sat up and looked around. It wasn't exactly like a room, more like a large orb where you couldn't see how far back it went or how close the ceiling was, it was just white.

I got out of bed, realising I was wearing clean white clothes, my usual white t shirt and loose white trousers. I felt strangely comfortable and warm.

‘Angie.’ The brother. He was much closer than before, as if he was standing right behind me, I turned slowly to find a man I didn't recognise staring at me. He had soft brown eyes, short curled blonde hair and was taller than I was ready for. He wasn't quite Remus's height, but he was close. He wore the same white t shirt and trousers and kept his hands by his sides, concern painted on his innocent features.

I took a couple of steps back, feeling fear sit firmly in my chest.

‘Please don't try to run.’ The brother said, his voice was much softer than I was expecting. ‘You'll get a fever and we might not be able to communicate this clearly again.’

‘What do you want? What does that mean?’

‘Angie, you need to calm down. I'm not going to hurt you. I can't hurt you.’ He took a breath and pulled up a chair that I was fairly sure hadn't existed before. ‘I have no right ask, but will you have a seat with me and talk?’

I was hesitant for a moment and the brother gave me all the time in the world to decide, he even started to brew tea.

‘It's not real, but if it makes you feel more comfortable we can have tea while we talk.’ He said, watching me from the corner of his eye. ‘Think about any chair you want and if you believe it exists, it will appear behind you and you can sit with me.’ He explained and sat back in his comfy looking armchair. I looked behind me and there was no chair in sight. ‘It's there, believe me.’ It was a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

I took a chance and sat back into the comfy chair that I often sat in when I would talk with Remus in his office. I tried not to give away how shocked I was, but I was fairly certain he noticed and said nothing.

‘Where are we?’ I asked.

The brother took a breath and sat back, leaning his chin on his hand. ‘Well, there isn't really a name for it. It's a sort of mid way point, your soul sits just next to mine, constantly brushing up against it, it's formed a very small connection between us and we are sitting within that connection.’

I frowned slightly. ‘A mid way point?’

The brother nodded and waited for me to say something else or possibly ask another question.

‘How do I know you're not lying? Or if this is a dream and you're Romulus trying to manipulate me?’

The brother smiled and sighed. ‘I'm afraid, there are limited things I can do to prove my identity and even if I show you them all, the evidence is not particularly convincing. In short, it's entirely up to you whether you believe me or not.’

‘What things? I'm not going to continue entertaining you until I'm sure of what I'm entertaining.’

The brother sat, letting himself get absorbed inside his own thoughts for a few moments.

‘I can show you memories. Things that only I could have done. I can show you the day I married my wife, the day she told me she was pregnant. I can show you the day my brother killed me and the day I… cursed my own son.’ The last part seemed to cripple the man in front of me for a few seconds and I wasn't stupid, I knew when it was a genuine pain. I'd seen it before a handful of times.

‘Why are we talking right now?’

This seemed to bring the brother out of his thoughts. ‘Because you're not well enough to wake up just yet and since your impromptu trip to Reykjavik, I thought it best that we discuss things you might be confused about.’

‘You woke up in Reykjavik? I felt unlocked after that.’

‘No, the lights gave me strength to sit just at the edge of your consciousness, to communicate with you if I felt it necessary, but you didn't know of my existence and I felt I may have scared you if I made you aware at that point… I've been awake for a long time now, since there was an intruder, the thing you called the Mist. I found it trying to warp your mind when you were sixteen years old.’ The brother shifted uncomfortably. ‘I'm afraid though, I may have done more harm than good. The Mist became agitated and more violent and I believe that was what caused it latch onto you with such force. I'm sorry.’ If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was showing genuine remorse for his actions. ‘But I did manage to scare it off eventually, I'm just sorry it took so long.’

‘You scared off the Mist?’

The brother nodded and still looked uncomfortable with himself.

‘How?’

There was a short pause. ‘By giving him a glimpse of my true form.’

‘So, this isn't what you really look like?’

‘It was once.’ He said and took a breath, remembering happier times. ‘I used to look exactly as you see me now, but over the centuries, my form has deteriorated and I no longer… look human.’

A part of me was curious, but I decided against asking the question.

‘I have questions.’ 

The brother chuckled slightly and nodded. ‘I know. And I want to answer every one of them. You want to know things about what happened between myself and Romulus, you want to know if I've had any influence on your life and you want to know what will happen in the end.’

I nodded and swallowed waiting for his reply.

‘Well, where to begin.’ The brother took a breath and thought for a moment. ‘The story your father told is accurate. It neglects to mention details of Romulus’s betrayal and the battle in which I died, but it's pretty much the whole story. The one thing he did say, for which I am grateful, is that a Lockwood gets stronger with every one that is born. You're the last Lockwood to be born and I believe that no matter what, you will live a long and happy life.’

I didn't mean to scoff at that, but it seemed so unlikely.

‘Angie, you and Darren, regardless of history or family misfortune, were meant for greatness.’ The brother leaned forward to keep my attention. ‘You are both extraordinary, your mother's family were very powerful and the areas in which they excelled are genetic. You are intelligent beyond any Lockwood before you, logical and brave and you have a wonderful ability to attract the right people in your life, not just with your beauty, but with who you are. People are attracted to kindness and leadership skills and you have these in abundance.’

‘I don't feel like I do sometimes.’

‘No one ever does.’ The brother smiled a little. ‘But believe me, I've been a part of some very strong individuals in my time and none compare.’

I still wasn't sure I believed him.

‘I haven't influenced your life in anyway, you don't have to believe me, but I haven't.’ He sat back again and thought on something. ‘I have only done my duty to my family, which is to keep them alive and healthy. You were once bitten by a lion fish, it was fatal and you should have died, but I did what I could to push the poison out and help anyone on the outside to cure you.’

‘What about the maze?’ I suddenly asked and he shifted again.

‘Actually, that's the one thing where you could have died that I had no part in. Of course, if you were in fatal danger I would have intervened, but you trained hard and this was your chance to prove yourself, I wasn't about to take that away from you.’

Again, I wasn't sure if I believed him, but if he was being honest then I appreciated it. The maze in the Triwizard Tournament had been the biggest challenge of my life and I was proud to say I had fought for my life and won.

‘The one thing I'm uncertain has crossed your mind, I presume not, but your relationship with Remus.’ The brother said carefully, watching for my reaction. ‘Your animagus is an extension of both you and I, it has all the beauty you posses, but the vicious nature that comes directly from me. Werewolves respond to it because they come from my brother and I, or rather they sense something that is the same as them and are attracted to it. I don't believe Remus in his human form is affected by it.’ 

Why this statement hadn't crossed my mind before I would never know, but he was right, werewolves responded positively to my animagus and it made sense that it would be because of how they were created. Remus was a werewolf and that meant he was affected as well, the brother couldn't have said for certain whether the human form was affected in the same way, but it was a possibility. 

‘Angie, the human form is not the same as the wolf.’ The brother tried to assure me, but it was no use. ‘The human form can feel things that the wolf cannot, things like love and compassion. The wolf is, like you once said, primal in its needs. It needs to survive and that's it.’

I swallowed painfully. ‘Remus said that he feels a desire to reproduce when it's close to the full moon.’

‘A side affect.’ The brother immediately said. ‘A side affect of what is inside him, but you've been curing that. He said one of his scars disappeared, how do you think that happened?’

I could suddenly feel the tears that had built up around my eyes. ‘I expected it has something to do with the Dittany in the wolfsbane, it's not usually mixed with lavender in such high quantities and that's probably working from the inside out to heal the scarring.’

‘I suspect that's what it is as well.’ The brother nodded and I could see a sympathy in his eyes. ‘Angie, many people in our family have attempted to cure werewolves, none have succeeded until you.’

‘Why?’

‘I think Romulus has had a great deal to do with that. We were always intelligent, always able to absorb a great deal of information and used it to think quickly, something that in itself has been absorbed by the Lockwoods we have been trapped inside. But Romulus believes intelligence to be a threat as much as a blessing, I think he has purposely sabotaged anyone who even came within a mile of a cure.’

‘Why?’ I asked again, with much more disgust than I had intended.

‘Romulus isn't a good person, he enjoys watching people suffer.’ The brother seemed to hold just as much disgust as I did. ‘What better way to do it than to allow werewolves a continued undisturbed existence?’

We both sat for a moment and thought on the suffering of werewolves. I had made a promise to Remus to help him and now hearing that someone had intentionally tried to stop that happening, I was angry.

‘Angie, you're getting close being able to wake up. Do you remember how we got here?’

It took a moment, but I did remember. I remembered the four wizards watching me and the brother getting gradually more agitated. I decided to leave the pub and find somewhere else to stay when I realised they were following me, I'd made the mistake in running and a fight broke out. The brother had told me to change into my animagus and run as fast as I could. They were average criminals looking to rob an outsider and wouldn't fire off anything fatal, I just had to run to a spot where the brother could use every piece of energy he could to apparate away from the danger. 

That was when I got caught by a stunner and why I found my breathing jagged and difficult. The brother had saved me.

‘Angie, they will ask you about it. We apparated over fifteen hundred miles without any form of aid, that takes a colossal amount of energy and I'm afraid it drained us both of everything we have. Your father has told Madam Pomfrey to administer energy boosters so that your body can repair itself properly while you rest.’

‘I have more questions.’

The brother nodded and sighed. ‘Then I'll try and answer as quickly as I can. You can sense dark magic, because I can. I spent my entire existence fighting my brother who is a dark wizard, I've learnt how to recognise it as well as other types of magic, something that as the bond between us grows stronger, you will be able to do as well. I've never been able to share these gifts with anyone before you, because it would allow Romulus to become aware of what a threat I am to him.’

‘If you've been fighting him all this time, why didn't you just finish him off?’

‘Have you ever tried to destroy a horcrux? There's not much that is powerful enough to do it and even less that would allow the host to continue to live. I'm not even sure those weapons are still in existence.’ He sighed again. ‘Angie, I still can't give you defining evidence that I am who I say I am, but I hope this conversation has shed some light on the truth. I don't know what the future holds, but I know that you will have to make some difficult decisions. You, like me, were born to be a hero, you come from royal blood lines and that means something. I have all the faith in the world that you will live up to the expectations that truly matter.’

The tears were still falling fast. ‘I just wanted a normal life.’

‘You can still have that, I promise there is still hope that you and Darren can live long, happy and normal lives. Angie, love is the most powerful force this world has ever known, you must fight for that at every turn and you will succeed.’

It was as if a distant mumbling were becoming clearer.

‘You're ready to wake up.’ The brother gestured towards the bed and as if I were running on automatic, I got in and pulled the clean white sheets up. ‘When you wake up, you'll struggle to breathe again, but it will pass… may I make a small suggestion as well?’

I frowned slightly.

‘Remus, his love for you is real. I know it is. I've felt love like his before. Keep him close, listen to his words of wisdom and never let him believe he is not worth your love in return. I suggest telling him about the fact you've been taking the dreamless sleep potion again, he will be angry, possibly furious, but the more you share with him, the better off you'll both be when it really matters.’

It was really the only thing the brother had said that I absolutely believed and agreed with. Remus deserved to know everything that had caused me pain and everything that made me happiest. He deserved everything I could give him.


	7. Remus's Confessions

Remus was teaching in the last period of the day. He'd been teaching his seventh year Slytherins and Hufflepuffs a little more about dementor attacks and their role at Azkaban as per the majority request of the class. He was very aware of the rumours about himself and Poppy and both had chosen to ignore them, but it did make Remus slightly more conscious of the older female students who continued to gossip about his personal life.

He had often kept his suit jacket buttoned up and wore a waistcoat beneath it to appear more like their teacher and less like someone who was only twelve years older than them. It seemed to do the trick for a while, until he'd caught the group of particularly irritating sixth year Ravenclaws at the foot of Angelina's bed. They had kept mostly to themselves since then and actually managed to produce good essays as per his request.

‘…and that appears to be all the time we have for today.’ He finished up the class, catching sight of the clock above the door. The students began finishing up their notes and packing away their things, while Remus lifted himself from his position leaning back again his desk and made his way round to the other side. ‘Tomorrow we’ll continue talking about repelling dementors with the patronus charm and start work on reviewing what we know about boggarts, vampires and werewolves as you all seem to have shown an interest in them.’

Remus began cleaning up his desk of the books he was using and felt a small wave of tiredness wash over him. He planned to go to the hospital wing to finish marking his essays next to Angelina's bed, the same as he had done everyday that week. She had been in the same state for close to five weeks and his worry had been escalating.

George had given his assurances that she would wake up soon, but Remus was becoming progressively less reliant on his theory.

‘Sir?’ 

Remus looked up to see one remaining student in his classroom. It was Matthew, a very average looking boy with brown eyes and brown floppy hair, he sat in the corner of the class and paid very close attention in all of his classes, furiously writing notes and reading the textbooks.

‘Matthew, what can I do for you?’ Remus tried to sound as cheery as possible, but he was eager to get to the hospital wing.

‘It's just about the last essay we did, the one on nonverbal spells.’ 

Remus nodded and knew where this conversation was going and smiled slightly. ‘Walk with me, I'm heading down to the hospital wing to check on someone, I daresay we will have the time to talk.’ Matthew had only just scraped the necessary grades to take his NEWTs and as much as Remus hated to admit it, he worried that Matthew may not have passed the higher examinations.

They left the classroom, Remus with the last ten or so essays he had to mark, tucked under his arm and they began to head towards the hospital wing.

‘Nonverbal spells, as I believe you mentioned in your essay, take concentration and focus.’ Remus started, he unbuttoned his suit jacket and waistcoat, feeling much better as they walked. ‘They also require a certain amount of desire on the individuals part to actually perform them. For example if I were to cast a spell that removed my tie, the only thing that would really matter is how much I would want to remove it, now seeing as classes are over and I no longer have to work, I very much want my tie off and in my pocket, like so.’ Remus said, and Matthew watched as Remus's tie undid itself and made its way into Remus's jacket pocket. ‘Now, I've been doing that for years, I'm only half sure of what the incantation is anymore. Start with low level things, think about want you want, say the incantation clearly in your mind and want it.’

Matthew didn't look convinced and Remus took pity on him as they entered the hospital wing. Remus looked over to Angelina's bed and saw that she was sitting upright with her dangling off the end and Poppy was tending to her, asking her questions and giving her the usual stern speech about resting and not pushing too hard.

‘Do you think starting with the levitation charm would work?’ Matthew asked as they got closer to Angelina's bed. Remus was significantly distracted, but did his duty as a teacher.

‘It's a simple enough charm that it should work.’ Remus nodded. ‘Try using a feather, you would have originally learnt the spell using one, so it makes sense to train yourself using a similar pattern.’

‘You have to believe it'll happen.’ A croaky voice came from Angelina. Remus turned to her and she looked so much more tired than he was prepared for. She still smiled with her beautiful blue eyes, but her usually thick, blonde hair looked as if it was weighing heavier than usual. She had looked the same way when she was worrying over her learning the wolfsbane potion five years before. 

Poppy gave a sympathetic smile and handed her another energy booster, before going to tend to another patient.

‘Nonverbal magic and even wandless magic ultimately come down to how much you believe you can do it.’ She explained further. ‘If you believe you can stir tea without using words, then it'll happen. If you believe you send a stunner, it'll happen. As soon as you get past the fact that it takes focus, it'll get easier and you'll be doing it everyday.’ Angelina smiled a tired and almost battered smile. ‘Did Professor Lupin show you his tie example?’

‘Yeah, just while we were walking.’ Matthew chuckled a little.

‘It's a good one.’

‘It's the best one I know.’ Remus cut in, he desperately wanted to kiss Angelina and hold her tight against him.

‘Well, I'd best get going.’ Matthew said and Remus was grateful. ‘I've got loads of studying to do. Thanks Professor.’

‘Any time Matthew, come and see me if anything else is troubling you.’ Remus nodded and smiled as the sixth year left the hospital wing with a new hope for his NEWTs. 

‘Thanks for the cardigan.’ Angelina said, pulling Remus's old cardigan tighter around her body.

Remus turned to Angelina and didn't bother checking if anyone was watching them, he put his paperwork down on the bedside table and wrapped his arms around her. ‘Angelina.’ He breathed, he could feel how weak she was. ‘I'm so glad you're awake.’ He pulled back and held her face so he could see her properly. She was smiling and it was clear she had been recently crying. ‘Why are you crying?’

Angelina sniffed and took a breath. ‘Because, I'm scared and excited. I have so much to tell you, but I'm too tired to do it right now.’ She half laughed. 

Remus smiled and half laughed as well, kissing her cheeks, her forehead and lips, just feeling her as he pulled a chair closer and sat down holding her hands either side of her legs, gently stroking his thumbs over her thighs.

‘I can't tell you how worried I've been.’ He said, feeling himself begin to lose control over his own tears. ‘I really thought you weren't going to wake up, you were unconscious for five weeks. You apparated all the way from Italy? Without using apparition sites or any kind of device.’

She did her best to drink the rest of her potion and lay down against the soft pillows. Remus thought on how beautiful she looked with his green cardigan wrapped around her shoulders, relaxed and curled up watching him with a smile playing on her features. 

‘I didn't have much choice.’ She said, quietly and Remus shuffled closer, pulling the sheets up to her waist and stroking her hair as she spoke. ‘There's so much to talk about, but one thing that I need to tell you…’ she suddenly struggled with her words and Remus frowned, wondering what it could have been that she wanted to say. Her tears seemed to get a little heavier. ‘I've been taking it again, the dreamless sleep.’ Remus's face dropped and he stopped stroking her hair. ‘Since Bulgaria and I'm so sorry. Remus I'm so sorry.’ She cried and Remus froze momentarily, unsure what his first reaction would be.

He made his decision and gestured for Angelina to move so that he could climb up on the bed next to her. He briefly caught a glimpse of a group of students at the end of the hospital wing and flicked his hand so that the curtain surrounded them.

Angelina cried into his chest for a few minutes as he held her close and kissed the top of her head. 

‘I don't know what to say.’ Remus said quietly, it was almost a whisper. ‘I'm… I can't watch you go through that again… why didn't you tell me you were struggling?’

‘I don't know.’ She sniffed and struggled to get her words out properly. ‘I think I just wanted to make you think I deserved you… I wanted you to think I was strong… I don't know.’

Remus thought on her words for a few moments and remembered what Lily had said to him. Angelina thought she wasn't good enough to be with him, but the reality was that Remus never really felt like a good man, not since he could remember.

‘When…’ Remus cleared his throat and adjusted next to Angelina, raking his fingers through her hair. ‘When I was young, maybe fourteen years old, I did something terrible… it was during the summer, when I was at home and… it was a full moon and I…’ Remus struggled to tell the story and Angelina's grip on him tightened. ‘I wanted to do something nice for my parents, James helped, as did a few of my friends and we sent them away to Ireland for the weekend, they did so much for me.’ Remus could barely speak, the memory kept washing over him again and again. ‘We lived in the middle of nowhere and there was a creek that I liked to… I sat and read by that creek every morning.’ Remus could see every detail of the memory playing out in front of his eyes.

‘Remus.’ Angelina whimpered against his chest.

‘They were muggles,’ he whispered. ‘Your age, nineteen and twenty… I remember seeing him get down on one knee, tell her she was beautiful… he said ‘could I be so lucky?’’ Remus felt a small laugh at how wonderful occasion it must have been for them. Angelina moved slightly so she could kiss the small patch of skin that poked out of his shirt below his neck and he took a jagged breath. ‘The muggle papers reported it as a bear attack even though, bears had never been seen in the area before… I never went to the creek again, never told my parents, but I think they knew… I don’t deserve to be happy, I don't deserve someone as beautiful as you… and yet, you treat me as if I'm the most remarkable thing you've ever seen.’ Remus half laughed again, his cheeks were burning with the tears that flooded his face. ‘I work every day, teaching these bright young people to be happy, to stay safe, to always be kind and I work every day to deserve the life you work so hard to allow me to have… I can't imagine my existence without you anymore… I don't want to.’

‘Remus.’ She whispered and again held him tighter against her weak body. ‘I want you. I chose you remember? I chose a life with you, because it's more worth it than anything I can imagine.’

Remus again half laughed, wondering how this wonderfully perfect creature could stand him and given what he had just revealed, gripped him tighter.

‘Angelina, your father will be here soon to take you home so you can rest.’ Remus took a breath and tried to compose himself somewhat. ‘You should tell him about the dreamless sleep so he can help. I'll come and see you at the weekend if you want me to?’

He could feel her falling asleep again, she was still exhausted. ‘Stay with me forever.’ She mumbled into his neck. She really had no idea how much she meant to him. Forever seemed like such a small thing to give her in exchange for her kindness.

Remus let her fall asleep and while she did, he gently stroked her hair, he breathed her in and thought on how truly lucky he was.

 

George had come to see his daughter and allowed her a little more time in the castle. Remus had carried her to the gates on the Friday evening and the three of them apparated to the house. Remus put her down in bed and she immediately curled herself around one of her pillows again. She would have had to wake up to take another potion before the night washed in, but again Remus was on hand to ensure she rested afterwards.

Remus watched her sleep most of the Saturday while he marked essays at her desk. George had left Remus with instructions to make sure she woke up every so often to take another energy booster while she was still recovering. She was just about able to stay awake for a few hours at a time before she got worn out again and needed to sleep.

During these precious few hours she was awake, they didn't talk about anything important, but Angelina did tell him that she had an odd experience with the brother. She didn't elaborate too much, but as far as Remus understood, he had helped her apparate all the way from Italy to Hogwarts which was well over fifteen hundred miles and once thought an impossible feat. Though Remus believed if he wanted to badly enough, he might have been able to do it save her.

He had apologised for not seeing her message sooner, but she barely even cared about that, she was just happy that she was back and able to hold him again.

‘Do you want some tea?’ Remus had been holding her against him while she woke up and they had spent the time talking about their holiday to Italy and how much she enjoyed Venice. She loved the boats and the clear water beneath, said it reminded her of boats they took during the first evening at Hogwarts.

‘Yes, but I don't want to you leave me just yet.’ She chuckled. Angelina had managed to put Remus's cardigan back on without him noticing, but he didn't mind in the slightest, she looked perfect with it on over her vest and shorts. She hadn't put her hair up either, which made her look especially beautiful and Remus knew he would never feel this way about anyone else, she was it.

‘You want to try coming down with me?’ Remus kissed her forehead.

‘Might as well try.’ She sighed and smiled into him.

They carefully manoeuvred downstairs to the kitchen, it took Angelina nearly fifteen minutes to go the short distance from her bedroom, to the seat closest to the stairs at the table. Remus went about making her some tea and watched as she pulled her legs up to her chest, pulling his cardigan tighter around her body. He stopped for a moment and she frowned at him staring.

‘Sorry.’ He smiled and continued making her some tea.

‘What do think? I mean, when you look at me like that? What goes through your mind?’ She leaned on her hand and watched him half laugh and think about his answer.

Remus poured the boiling water into her favourite mug and opened the drawer with the small stash of chocolate that George usually kept for emergencies. He handed her the chocolate, breaking off a couple of smaller pieces so that she didn't have to struggle and soon sat down next to her, placing the mug on the table in front of her.

‘You want to know what goes through my mind when I look at you?’ He asked and caught a small cheeky glint in the corner of her eye. He brought his chair closer so that she was placed between his legs and he could talk at a slightly lower level. No one was around and wouldn't be for a while, but he was aware that she enjoyed him being so close.

‘I think I can handle it.’ She smirked and slid a small piece of chocolate in her mouth. Remus took a breath and cleared his throat.

‘Okay, well, when you woke up a few days ago, I was speaking with Matthew about nonverbal magic, you remember?’ She nodded and frowned a little. ‘Well, you laid down and curled yourself around the pillow and I imagined you doing that to me, I wanted to have your arms wrapped around my waist while I stroked your hair, because I know you like that and it relaxes you. When you woke up this morning, you were hot, so you moved the sheets and I thought about running my hand over your thighs and having your legs wrapped around my waist.’ Angelina sucked in a harsh breath and it made Remus wanted to kiss her lips that were now slightly parted. ‘I want to kiss you,’ he grazed his thumb over her bottom lip and could feel her gently releasing her breath across his skin. Remus leaned in and carefully pressed his lips to hers, she was always so warm and soft. Remus took a small breath. ‘Your lips are always soft and it makes me feel good… I enjoy the way you look right now, it's like no one else gets to see you like this and it…’

‘Turns you on?’ Where did her confidence come from? Remus kissed her gently again and smiled against her mouth.

‘Yes, it does.’ He said quietly, as much as Remus wanted her, she was in no fit state to do anything beyond drink her tea. So he sat back and threw one leg over the other, still watching her. ‘Have some tea.’ His voice was slightly off and she could tell. ‘If you really think you can, I might give you more than a goodnight kiss tonight.’ He promised when she looked a little pleadingly at him. 

Remus noticed she did everything she could to try and recover quicker for the rest of the day, she took her energy boosters and she tried to conserve as much energy as she could while she was in bed.

They heard the sounds of George coming home that evening. Remus had been back marking papers when he appeared at the door.

‘Angie, how are you?’ He said, panting slightly.

‘Better.’ She said and smiled, sitting up to see her father properly. He'd sat down on the edge of her bed to examine her and Remus put his quill down to watch.

‘Well, you look a lot less tired than you did.’ George smiled. ‘You've taken your energy boosters?’

‘Yes.’ She rolled her eyes smiling. ‘Remus has been forcing them on me every few hours, like you asked.’

‘Even managed a trip downstairs this afternoon.’ Remus cut in, throwing one leg over the other as usual.

‘Well that's good.’ George hugged his daughter. ‘You'll be fit again in no time.’ He smiled again. ‘Mum won't be home tonight, she's on a weekend and Darren's first game back is tonight, I promised I'd try and make it. You don't mind do you?’

‘No course not.’ Angelina shook her head, he answer was a little quick and Remus knew exactly why, rolling his eyes a little. ‘I'm sure he'll do well.’

‘Well then, in that case, I'll grab a quick cup of tea and be off. It's against the canons so should be over fairly quickly.’ George laughed and headed off downstairs to make his tea.

‘He looks like he's had a hard day.’ Remus commented when George was out of earshot.

‘He always looks like that when mums on a weekend.’ Angelina sighed. ‘He worries about her constantly.’

Remus knew what that was like.

George eventually left for the game and Remus found that Angelina had once again fallen asleep, she was in no physical condition for him to do anything with her and not a single part of him minded, he knew it was a long shot.

He got changed and slipped into bed next to her, she stirred only to reposition herself so that she could listen to his heartbeat, the thing she loved most and the thing that gave him most comfort.


	8. Plans

I had eventually been able to sit in my lab and write back to all my friends that had been asking if I was okay. I was glad that so many of them were so concerned, but the stack of letters on my desk looked rather intimidating. 

There was enough space that I'd moved my desk so that I could look out at the view from the balcony, it was gorgeous to see the rolling hills as the backdrop. We lived close to three other people in the same patch of field, but their homes sat the other side of the house and it was just the hills I could see from this side.

My parents had taken to looking after any plants that needed attention while I was away, they even wrote a few notes on anything they saw and I loved them for it. I wasn't sure why, but I kept wearing Remus's cardigan while I was working, it made me miss him less and think about him more.

Remus hadn't been able to visit during the week as the school had required him there, but he did come back for the weekend again and we talked about what had happened in the Alban Hills, he was understandably worried and suggested that we tell my father about the conversation with the brother, he might have had a new perspective.

‘You actually sat down and spoke with him?’ My father asked, handing me a hot chocolate. I nodded and pulled Remus's cardigan closer to my body, it was so warm. ‘When Darren said he'd been talking with his brother, I wondered how, but it does make sense.’ My father sat down and removed his thick rimmed glasses, rubbing his tired face. He'd gotten considerably more grey hairs over the years, but I knew my mother liked it. ‘If there were two of them inside me, they'd have equal access to me and it would be difficult for either one to do something without the other knowing about it.’

‘That's what he said, he said he could share some of his abilities with me, because Romulus isn't there so can't do anything drastic.’

My father gave me a sideways glance. ‘Romulus?’ I nodded again. ‘Darren says he believes Remus is inside him as well.’ I felt my heart sink. ‘Romulus has ways of manipulating you, its possible he would pass himself off as his brother in order to gain your trust. Angie, I hope you understand that.’

‘He said he saved me from the lion fish bite when I was young, and the Mist.’ How could I still not be sure of which brother I had inside me?

‘There are a lot of reasons why Romulus would want to keep you alive, maybe the body isn't strong enough just yet, maybe he's not strong enough yet?’ My father mused and we heard my mother getting home. ‘We’ll talk more another day, your mother hasn't had the best week. We don't want to upset her.’ There was a painful sadness to my fathers words and I felt for my parents, they both had fairly dangerous jobs and any day could be their last, but they always made sure to leave their work at work and come home to a happier place.

Remus placed his hand over mine and gave me a small smile, indicating I should drink my hot chocolate. I half laughed and did as I was told.

I went to bed feeling a little frustrated, I still didn't know which brother I had inside me and there was no real way to be sure, he could fabricate the memories and I wouldn't know the difference.

‘Angelina.’ Remus said quietly. I realised I'd stopped mid-removal of my t-shirt and Remus had been watching me, I smiled a little and took the whole thing off. Remus shifted slightly and I counted it as a victory. Without putting anything back on, I curled up against Remus and smiled to myself. ‘I know exactly what you're doing.’ He said against my forehead.

‘And what would that be?’ I couldn't stop my smile.

‘You won't be surprised to find its working a little.’ Remus shifted again and I could feel exactly what I had done to him. I lifted my head and gave him a small kiss, much to his frustration. ‘Well, that's not nearly enough.’ He complained and it made me giggle.

Remus reached over to grab his wand and quickly put up a silencing charm.

‘Oh really?’ I raised my eyebrows.

‘Oh definitely.’ Remus confirmed and lifted himself up on his elbow. ‘Can I ask you something?’ He suddenly said, kissing my cheek and gently running his hand down my neck and chest. I managed to muster a nod. ‘You remember when we were in Reykjavik and we talked a little about what you were doing in your sleep?’

‘Yes.’ I said slowly.

‘Well, in the interest of being honest and upfront with you… I think about it sometimes.’ Remus had a faint blush across his cheeks and I decided I was going to take full advantage.

‘And how does that make you feel?’ I reached up to kiss his jaw and felt Remus fall into me slightly.

‘Warm.’ He laughed. ‘It makes me think about watching you for real, possibly helping if that was something you'd allow me to do?’

I took a breath and tried not to show just how turned on I was. ‘I think I can handle that.’ 

Remus groaned into me and his kisses felt more intense and I knew this was him not wanting to stop, he wanted me. Remus let his lips drift down my neck and it made my skin that much more sensitive to his touch. He ran his tongue over my nipples and massaged my breasts, feeling himself get more and more excited.

I ran my hands through his hair and let myself absorb the feel of him against me. His mouth found my hips and his teeth scraped against the thin layer of skin and shot straight between my legs. Remus gently pushed them apart and ran his tongue lightly over me, making me sigh into him even more.

But he stopped there and returned to my mouth. I could feel his hand guiding mine between my legs and I suddenly felt nervous, he sensed it straight away and smiled.

‘If it feels good, keep doing it.’ He whispered and I chuckled slightly.

I slid my fingers down and felt how wet I was, I gasped a little and Remus just laughed again.

‘Believe me, it's better like that.’ He said and I could feel my cheeks beginning to burn up. ‘Find what feels good and keep doing it.’ He encouraged and moved so that he was on his side watching and occasionally running his hand over himself which excited me more than I would have cared to admit, but of course, Remus noticed and if I lost any confidence in what I was doing, he would do it again.

I found a rhythm I liked and let myself get wrapped up in it for a while. ‘That feels good.’ I breathed and could feel the frantic energy that Remus always gave me, beginning to build up.

‘It looks good.’ Remus's breath was a little ragged as he watched me. ‘Do you want me to help?’ He asked and I breathed another yes. He moaned against my neck and apparently that was very much the right answer.

Remus very lightly slid his hand over mine and I could feel my nerve endings responding in kind. ‘You're so wet.’ He whispered and kissed my jaw, my neck and my shoulder, showing me how much he appreciated it.

I wasn't quite prepared for it, but Remus suddenly slid his fingers inside inside me and I reached up to hold on to the pillow behind me. He seemed to enjoy what he was seeing and it encouraged Remus to slide in and out of me as I kept up the rhythm with my own hand. But something was telling me it wasn't quite enough, I needed more.

‘Remus.’ I breathed against his temple, he slowed down slightly and it was agonising. ‘No, don't stop, I need more.’ I whispered and again Remus groaned, kissing me harshly and sliding in and out faster than before. 

‘Angelina.’ He whispered against my lips. ‘Come for me, please.’ It was my undoing, my body stretched out up the bed as the frantic energy exploded, I didn't ever want it to stop, I wanted it continue forever. Remus gently kissed my neck and for whatever reason, the image of him doing this exact thing to me in his office, floated through my mind. It made me smile as I relaxed back down. ‘What were you thinking?’ Remus was breathing heavier.

I wasn't sure I wanted to tell him. ‘I… it was just a thought, save it for another time.’ There was a flash of excitement that passed over Remus's face and I felt my cheeks burn red.

‘In that case, can I ask something else of you?’ He placed a gentle kiss to my lips as he carefully removed his hand from inside me.

‘Bit greedy tonight.’ I joked and it pulled a laugh from him.

‘I’ve been looking after you while you weren't well, I think I've deserved a small reward.’ He shot back with his cheeky smile. ‘I just want to try something different with you.’

‘Okay?’

Remus smiled again, shaking his head. ‘Turn on your side, facing the wall.’ I did as I was told and as soon as he positioned himself behind me I got the picture. I gently guided him inside me and allowed him to fill me up.

Remus groaned into my neck as his hand came around to massage my breast, it felt so good and Remus let himself get wrapped up in his thrusts, going just a little deeper every time until I felt him breathe out my name and shake around my body.

He continued to breathe harshly into my shoulder and soon I was falling asleep, feeling the rest of my energy disappear into sleep.

This appeared to be my life now, it wasn't what I imagined I would be doing, but over the months following Italy, I worked in my lab, I had dinner with my friends and Remus and I grew closer. We had talked about what happened in the maze, the nightmares I had and what our future might have consisted of.

I asked him why he never corrected anyone when they called me his wife and he claimed it was because it was easier to brush them off than to stand and explain that we weren't married. I wasn't exactly sure I believed him, but I didn't press the matter.

My father had warned me that the detox from the dreamless sleep would be worse the second time, because of the length of time I had been taking it. He was right and for nearly a month after Christmas I was unable to move from my bed and needed to be moved to St Mungo's so that I could be monitored all day and night. 

Remus could only manage to see me once and I didn't mind that he couldn't come back, I understood how hard it must have been for him to see me like that.

The brother had kept relatively quiet up until I began making progress with my research when he would have his say. A part of me didn't really want to listen and tried work out if what he was saying made any logical sense, sometimes it did and other times there was a better alternative.

Darren and I had begun growing closer as well, I went to as many games as I could, save for when I was in hospital. It seemed he was struggling with the brother inside of him more than I was and I worried for him. He had decided to tell Katie about it and she hadn't reacted the way he thought she would, she took some time to think about it and came back telling him that she would stand by him no matter what.

I contemplated telling my friends as well and asked Remus if it was a good idea.

Angelina,

I told you once before, any information you have is yours to do with as you see fit. You know what is appropriate to say in front of them and you know them better than anyone, if you think they will be accepting then I'm sure they will. But if you think for a second that they might not, then I'd suggest waiting until a time when you feel it is information they need to have.

I hope they stand by you and I'll be waiting to hear how they take it. Have fun at dinner.

Stay safe.

Yours always

Remus

It was an odd conversation to have with my friends, none of them seemed to know quite how to take it. 

David had come home as his mother’s cousin had passed away suddenly, he said he wasn't especially close with him, but that his mother was. Jack and Benji had been working closely recently given a small wave of werewolf attacks and Jocelyne had been decorating the house with her time off work. The kitchen had been finished long ago and it looked good with its darkened surfaces and white walls.

I told them everything I could, from start to finish and they all stopped eating to watch me for a moment.

Benji cleared his throat and it seemed to bring everyone back to the room. ‘I don't really understand.’ He half laughed.

‘It doesn't make sense, it sounds insane.’ I agreed. ‘But I can hear him sometimes, talking to me and with what I found in the Alban Hills, it's hard not to see that this really is the truth. I couldn't have apparated all the way from Italy to the castle without help.’

‘Yeah, but a three thousand year old soul?’ David laughed. ‘Seems a bit out there to me.’

‘And I'm not sure humans can be horcurxes without some serious side effects.’ Jack sat back thinking on it. 

‘There are side effects.’ I explained, sipping my butterbeer. ‘I can hear him speaking to me, I'm more sensitive to dark magic, that's how I could find Karkaroff in that house.’

‘I was talking to Kingsley about that actually,’ Benji nodded. ‘He says only someone who is sensitive to dark magic can do something like that.’

‘It still sounds a bit weird.’ David said, gulping down a little more of his butterbeer.

‘Does it hurt?’ It was suddenly clear that Jocelyne was incredibly worried for me. I leaned forward, shaking my head and giving her a small smile.

‘No.’ I told her. ‘No, it doesn't hurt at all.’ I tried to be as reassuring as possible.

‘But you can feel him?’ Jack frowned.

I bobbed my head from side to side. ‘Sometimes, if I need help or when I was close to where he was born, I could feel something else inside me, it's hard to explain.’

The five of us sat in silence for a few more minutes, until Benji decided that we needed to cheer up a bit. 

They promised to keep it to themselves and David announced he was going to propose to Cassie, it was a celebration from then on and we made plans to have a party for Remus's birthday. It would be his thirtieth and he deserved a big celebration for it. The full moon was nowhere near the date and it would be perfect. Jocelyne had been the one to suggest it and took great pleasure in helping me plan it.

‘I'll write to James and Lily and see if they have any suggestions.’ I laughed as we said our goodbyes. I hugged Jocelyne and I could feel her holding me tighter than normal. ‘I'm fine, you don't need to worry.’ I said quietly.

She smiled and looked as if she was trying to hold back her tears. ‘I know, I'm just… not surprised that this is who you are. You were always special, so much better than the rest of us, sometimes I half wondered why you chose to hang around with us, but you kept us entertained all the same. Let me know about Remus's birthday as soon as you can.’ 

‘You know it's like six weeks away?’ I laughed.

‘I know, there isn't an awful lot of time to plan, but we’ll make it work.’

I just shook my head and Jack, David and I left to go home finally. 

 

I continued my research into the anti flaring and finally had a balm that should have done what I wanted it to. Clara and my father had been on hand when I needed them and I explained the idea of the balm and the kind of things I expected her to feel.

‘Right, last chance to back out.’ I said, preparing the balm and writing a few notes. My father was rolling his shirt sleeves up.

‘I said, I'd help.’ Clara half laughed. ‘I'm ready.’

‘Okay.’ I nodded and my father picked up the small knife from the desk. ‘The full moon is tonight and we've agreed on a scale of one to ten, that for a small cut like this obtained on the day of, you'll feel flaring at a six on the pain scale. The balm should take it down to two.’

I watched her flinch a little as my father made a half an inch incision on her forearm. We then applied a little of the balm before closing the wound.

‘Is that it?’ She asked, stroking her thumb over the area where her incision was.

‘That's it.’ I nodded. ‘How are you feeling just now?’

‘Fine, a little tingling, but that's it. It stung a bit, but I suppose rubbing anything into an open wound stings a bit.’ She smiled.

‘True.’ I had to laugh a little, remembering every time I'd been in the same position. ‘Right, I take it dads gone over everything with you? About the locked rooms at St Mungo's?’

‘Yup, it's all good.’ She said and my father helped her up and back into her cardigan. ‘I hope this works Angie.’

‘Me too.’ I nodded and took a breath. ‘However, I've used the nocturnal puffapods to allow certain things to happen, they're not exactly easy to come by. Easy to take of and easy to grow, but finding them is the hard part.’

Clara had eventually left for the hospital with my father and I thought on the puffapods for a while. They were incredibly durable and stubborn plants and I'd found that they had a whole list of uses, but like I'd said, they were difficult to get a hold of. 

I'd written to Remus during the day to say that it would be the first round of testing of the balm. He had been busy most of the week and would be when the full moon was over, so we decided not to include him as a subject, but Alfred and Alice had agreed to try it. They were with Jack and St Mungo's and he would carry out the testing with them.

I hadn't had much luck with translating any of the symbols I'd found in the Alban Hills and the brother had refused to help. He promised not to stop me from finding out, but he wouldn't offer any assistance, the only thing I managed to get out of him was that most of it was to do with the blood magic that protected the area. I wondered if it was in fact a spell and tried to be careful in case I set something off.

James had spoken to me at a Falcons Tornadoes game about Remus's birthday and we decided to have it at my house, thinking Remus would be more likely to come and see me at short notice than James. He didn't seem to mind, but gave that familiar smile that people would have when talking about us. 

We talked about the people we wanted to invite and obviously, his father was on the list as was Clara, but it suddenly dawned on us that Remus really wasn't close to many other people. We wanted him to be surrounded by people though, people who cared for him so began branching out to include my friends, Harry and his friend Ron, a couple of people from the quidditch team that he got along with, Alfred and Alice and we would send an open invitation to the Hogwarts staff, though we were aware that as it was still term time, many of them would have to stay at the castle with the students.

‘Right, that seems like a good number.’ James said thoughtfully as we were both about to apparate home. 

‘Jocelyne said she wanted to take care of the cake, so best leave her to it.’ I chuckled and James nodded. I could see he was exhausted.

‘I think we've got everything else covered between us then. I'll let Lily know.’ I gave him a quick hug and we soon went our separate ways.

I went to bed thinking on what I could get Remus as a gift, he was so difficult to buy for and I wondered what exactly he would even want, if anything. I had a couple of ideas floating around my head, but none that seemed particularly special.

 

Remus had heard about the success of the anti flaring and after his lesson with the second year Hufflepuffs, he asked Erin to stay behind and tell her the good news, as well as give her a small jar of the balm from Angelina. 

‘Yes, Professor?’ Erin approached his desk as he was cleaning up a few books. He went through his normal routine of unbuttoning his jacket and waistcoat and began loosening his tie as he spoke.

‘Just wanted to see how you're feeling after the quidditch game on Saturday?’ He said casually.

‘Bit bruised, but I'm okay.’ She nodded.

‘Well, what would you say if I told you I had something to help with that?’ Remus watched as Erin's face lit up, he threw his tie on his desk and opened the top two buttons of his shirt so he could breathe a little more freely. ‘Angelina has asked me to make it clear that while the balm has been successful, she can't speak for the long term effects. So, only when necessary and only to be used on severe injuries. Can we agree?’

‘Yes sir!’ Her smile was extremely contagious and Remus nodded with his own smile. He went into his room beneath the stairs to his office and grabbed the jar along with a letter from Angelina.

‘Angelina thinks this should last you around a year and a half, but then she was calculating from her own injuries when playing quidditch.’ Remus chuckled and handed over the jar of slightly pink looking balm. 

‘I don't know what to say.’ Erin looked down at the jar.

‘Well, knowing Angelina, I expect she'd be happy with it simply allowing you to play as much quidditch as you like.’ Remus thrust his hands in his pockets and waited for Erin to say something.

‘I can't believe she did it.’ Erin said more to herself and Remus wasn't quite prepared for the floodgates to open. He quickly jumped into action and brought her to sit down at one of the desks, placing the jar just next to her.

‘Erin, why are you crying?’ Remus handed her a handkerchief from his pocket.

‘I just… she's so nice to me.’ Erin said through stuttered breaths. ‘She doesn't know me and she's so nice, and I thought I was a monster and she doesn't and I don't understand why.’

Remus had to laugh a little, he could understand how overwhelming it might have been for Erin, that being so young and not quite being sure if she could even come to Hogwarts at one point. Now look, she was doing well academically, playing quidditch and was entering the world at a time where werewolves may well be accepted into society as much as anyone else.

Remus let her have a few moments to cry, allowing her to calm down enough that he could speak to her. He rested on his hand and raised his eyebrows a little when she looked at him.

‘Angelina grew up with a father who works as a healer at St Mungo's and a mother who currently works as a very high ranking Auror.’ Remus said carefully. ‘She has grown up seeing both sides of a werewolf, the one who cannot stand to live with themselves and the one who attacks because they're angry with what life has presented them with. But the one thing she always maintains is that the human part of a werewolf, is still human, one that can feel pain and heartbreak, can feel anger and frustration, happiness and joy but more importantly, can have the same opportunities and chance at life as everyone else. She has done some remarkable things in her time and helping werewolves I believe is the one thing she more proud of than anything else.’

Erin sniffed and took a slightly more composed breath. 

‘Erin, Angelina is a very special individual, she always has been, even when she was a child,’ Remus continued. ‘She has never lost her craving for knowledge and never stopped when things looked most dire, I'm not even sure she knows how.’ He chuckled slightly. 

‘Can I write to her to say thank you?’

‘Of course.’ Remus smiled and nodded.

‘Will she read it?’ 

Remus laughed a little. ‘She will if I let her know you're writing. As you can imagine she receives a lot of letters weekly from the ministry and from the places she's been and made friends, but she always makes time for those she has helped.’

Erin took a breath and finally looked like she was ready to head off to dinner. Remus still had a little work to do, but wished her luck with her studies.

Erin,

I hope this letter finds you well. Remus has told me about the issue you've been having concerning getting injured during quidditch matches and has asked if I know of anything that might be able to help.

First of all, congratulations for making the team! I had a great time playing when I was there and have no doubt that you will learn a lot. The only advice I can give you is the advice my brother gave me. Stand up to every challenge, don't back down if you think there's even a chance and learn one thing from every match. I hope you find some wisdom in his words, I know I did.

With regards to the flaring, I'm not sure anything else would be strong enough for someone with your condition, so I have taken the time to create something that might just do the trick. It's simply called Anti-Flaring and is designed to alleviate any flaring from injuries that occur in your human form.

I have sent Remus the first batch of anti flaring balm for you to use and have attached a list of instructions and possible side effects. I am gifting a jar to you on the condition that you are responsible with it. If any of the side effects come up after use, please see Madame Pomfrey or Remus, either one will be able to assess and help you if it is required. I hope you understand that while I don't want to see you in any kind of pain, the balm will not eliminate it completely, but it will make a broken leg feel like a mildly annoying bruise.

I hope you continue to do well in school, Remus tells me your getting some of the top grades and for this I am very pleased.

Write if you have any questions or you need any help with anything.

Angie Lockwood


	9. Remus's Birthday

Another speech down and another magical remedy on the market. Fudge was especially impressed with the work I'd managed to do with the Anti-Flaring Balm, the name was kept and I had received another award for excellence by St Mungo's for my work. The minister had insisted on presenting me with an award for the discovery of the nocturnal puffapod and I had asked that Professor Sprout be mentioned in his speech, to which he agreed.

Once again my family and friends looked up at me with a pride in their eyes and Remus gave me his usual wink of confidence. It was a big day for everyone and it also happened to be Remus's birthday. I'd made a thing of asking if he wanted to do anything, but he would just reply with wanting to spend it with me and that would make him happy enough.

‘Well, how about we go for a walk?’ I suggested when my mother told me they needed half an hour to get everything ready.

‘Okay, where shall we go?’ Remus smiled and held his arm out for me to take.

‘Can we go to Flourish and Blotts?’ I asked, remembering something. ‘Apparently there's now a small section on werewolves and I want to see if my book is there.’

Remus frowned and laughed a little, but didn't disagree. We wandered up the busy street and I carefully checked the time, we still had twenty minutes to kill before we needed to get to the house for Remus's birthday. We went upstairs to the dark creatures section and sure enough, a small collection of books on werewolves sat in prime position on the shelves.

I looked at Remus and felt a small rush of excitement pass through me. I took my hair band out and let my hair fall over my shoulders, suddenly feeling so much better and less like a ministry official or mad scientist. I could still feel my cards in my coat pocket that had my notes on them as I put my hair band away.

‘There it is.’ I pointed to where my book sat and turned to Remus who's cheeks were a strange shade of pink. 

‘I'm very proud.’ He smiled, but I wasn't going to let him get away with it.

‘I think you're a bit more than proud.’ I said a little quieter so that the family on the other side of the bookshelf couldn't hear.

Remus began blushing a little more and chuckled, moving a little closer to me. ‘You look nice with your hair down.’ Was all he said, before placing a small kiss to my lips.

‘Good.’ I couldn't help my smile. ‘I'll keep it down more often then.’ I promised.

‘I'm sure good things will happen if you do.’ I suddenly saw a small witch appear from behind the shelves and pretended I was searching for something, Remus cleared his throat, taking a small step away. Once the witch was gone, I couldn't stop giggling, using the shelves to balance myself and Remus wasn't much better.

‘Come on, lets go.’ I said, taking Remus's hand leaving the shop. A few people stopped me in the street, either recognising me as Darren's sister or as being in the recent issue of the Prophet. I gave them a little time and answered a few questions until it was time for Remus and I to leave Diagon Alley. ‘Can I ask you a question?’ I turned to Remus just before we apparated and wrapped my arms around his waist.

‘Of course.’ He said, kissing my forehead and waiting patiently.

‘Do you… like that I'm young?’ It was only slightly humiliating. ‘I mean, is it… you know?’

‘I thought you'd gotten past your awkward phase of not being able to ask direct questions?’ Remus teased and I rolled my eyes. ‘The answer is yes and no. I like that you're young, because you're still very curious, you have such potential ahead of you and it's exciting to see what you'll make of yourself in years to come… and what I think you're really asking me is if I think its incredibly sexy that I'm sleeping with someone ten years younger than myself, which you know the answer is yes.’

I laughed and reached up to kiss him. ‘You said yes and no.’

Remus sighed and I let him go, giving him a little more room. ‘The only downfall and, I want to be clear that this isn't any reason to get upset or think I'm anything less than in love with you, but sometimes I'm reminded that you and I come from very different times. I was fighting a war before you'd even started school and often I feel it's difficult to talk to you about it, because I don't know what your experience with it was. That's the only thing, the only downfall, I promise.’

I thought for a moment and he was right, we came from two entirely different periods in time and it was hard to grasp that properly. ‘You know I'm here though, if you do want to talk about it?’

‘Of course.’ Remus nodded and placed another kiss against me.

‘Right, come on, lets go back to mine.’ I tried to make it seem like I just thought of it and I appeared to be successful.

We apparated into my back garden and Remus began telling me some story about one of his students, I wasn't listening exactly, I was far too excited. I could just about make out someone standing at the end of the table.

I opened the door and turned the light on to see Remus's surprised face when all of his friends and family appeared, cheering in front of him. He saw his father and hugged him tightly as well as Clara and James and Lily, but it was Harry that nearly broke him. The young Potter ran up to him, Remus just about catching him in a hug as Harry said his happy birthday. 

It was a good night all in all, most people had the weekend off, there wasn't a quidditch game and my father and Jack didn't need to work unless there was an emergency, so everyone was free to stay or go as they pleased. Remus had been caught in conversations for most of the night and I spent it with David and Jocelyne, sitting on my kitchen counter getting a little tipsy.

David had asked Cassie to marry him and she had thankfully said yes. They hadn't set a date, but David was beyond excited. I had taken a moment to look around at all the people having fun, my parents were talking to James and Lily and it was a picture of happiness. To see people so well suited to each other was amazing, I hoped that was what Remus and I looked like. 

Alice and Alfred had come over to say their hellos at one point, we'd gotten into a conversation about the balm I'd invented and about the nocturnal puffapods.

‘Why don't you sell them?’ Alfred had suggested. He looked a lot better than when we had met for the original wolfsbane trials.

‘I don't know the first thing about business.’ I chuckled.

‘Alfred does.’ Alice piped up. ‘You've been selling watches for years.’

‘Watches and plants don't exactly mix in the same circles.’ Alfred laughed.

‘No, but I've got a few friends who work at the greenhouses in Cornwall. I'm sure they would know about that stuff.’

‘Maybe.’ I thought about it and it was a fair idea.

I hadn't actually seen Remus for a little while until James had brought him through to the kitchen, he was jumping with excitement all over Remus and it filled me with joy to see. I wondered if that's what they looked like in school as well. Remus just seemed to brush him off with ease and somehow looked so much lankier around James.

Jocelyne had gotten him an amazing cake covered in buttercream icing with chocolate sauce in the middle, Remus's favourite. He didn't stop smiling the entire time and before he blew out the candles he searched for me and gestured for me to stand beside him. His arm wrapped his arm around my waist and kissed my forehead.

‘Happy birthday Remus.’ I said, and kissed his cheek.

The rest of the night ran on well into the morning hours, Remus looked so in his element, he spoke with everyone at least once, but seemed to not want to let me go. He kept me either tucked under his arm or held my hand the entire time and I loved it. It made me happy.

We eventually went to bed, my parents were still dancing and Darren and Clara had fallen asleep on the sofa and everyone else had left for the evening. Remus barely waited until the silencing charm was up before he began kissing me and lifting my t-shirt off, he couldn't stop smiling.

‘Thank you, Angelina.’ He whispered against my lips. I could see how dark his eyes had become, there was very little left of the thin blue circle around his pupils. This was my Remus.


	10. The Calm Before...

He couldn't imagine a better life than this. To have the most beautiful woman in the world curled up, sleeping in his arms, to know that she cared enough to throw him a huge celebration for his birthday, to be with him at the end of the night and laugh as they made love to each other, to simply be his. Why would anyone want more?

She smelled so good, sweet and light without being invasive. Her hair was soft as was her skin, he loved to run his fingers over her and in the morning light, she looked especially desirable.

Remus could feel her waking up and moving around a little. She turned over and pulled herself closer to his body, she was only just awake and could easily have fallen asleep again, but he wanted to see her huge, ocean blue eyes for the first time that day.

‘Angelina.’ He whispered and she hummed in response. ‘It's time to wake up.’ She frowned a little and went to turn over, thinking he would give up if he couldn't see her face, but they'd done this dance a hundred times. Remus followed her to the other side of the bed. ‘You know that doesn't work, come on.’

It was as if she suddenly needed to do something. ‘I didn't give you your present.’ She said, with a little drool escaping her mouth. 

‘You mean last night wasn't my birthday present? You could've fooled me with some of the things you were saying.’ That made her turn and give him a shocked look. ‘I'll fill you in later… no pun intended.’ He added with a wink.

‘Well, I'm mortified.’ She shook her head and Remus had to laugh and watched as she scrambled out of bed and over to her desk. She was beautifully curved from behind as well, the few scars she had didn't bother him in the slightest, it made her unique, it made her his Angelina.

She eventually came back and snuggled up against him, handing Remus a small package wrapped in silver paper. 

‘You don't want to watch me open it?’ Remus sat up fully and it only made her pull the warm sheets tighter to her body.

‘I already know what it is.’ She teased and eventually sat up with him, waking up slightly more.

Remus kissed her and wiped away some of the drool on her face, to which she was again mortified and began wiping it away with a tissue from inside her drawer. 

He began unwrapping his present to find it was a silver frame with an almost Celtic design around the edge. The frame contained a picture of the both of them at Benji and Jocelyne’s wedding. She was gorgeous in her dark red dress, the lace delicately placed over her slender shoulders, her strong, sexy legs carefully slotted into her black shoes and there he was being kissed by her.

He remembered the wedding and he remembered feeling so lucky to be seen with Angelina holding his hand let alone actually kissing him. It was a moment he never wanted to forget and clearly something that meant something to her as well.

‘I know it's not a great a present or anything.’ She shrugged and he could see the slight disappointment in her eyes. ‘You're so hard to buy for and the only thing I could think was that you didn't have any pictures in your room. Well, you've got that one of your mum, but that's it and I thought you might have liked more.’

Remus cleared his throat and leaned over to place the picture on the side table so that they could see it. ‘Have I ever told you, how in love with you I am?’

Angelina's playful smile was back. ‘I don't mind hearing it again.’ She reached up and pressed a small kiss to his lips and once again it was no where near enough.

Unfortunately they were interrupted by someone knocking furiously on her bedroom door.

‘Angie!’ It was her mother. Remus sighed and placed a small kiss on her forehead as he took down the silencing charm.

‘Yeah?’ She yelled back. Remus rolled onto his back and rubbed his tired eyes.

‘Angie, we have to go to the ministry now!’ Her mother was almost hysterical. ‘There's been an incident.’ Remus could hear the sounds of Anna knocking on Darren's door and telling him the same thing.

It took Angelina a minute to get up and throw on some clothes and Remus had barely zipped up his trousers. 

‘Any idea what it might be?’ He asked, reaching for his blue green shirt that had found its way onto the floor.

‘No clue.’ She shook her head. ‘There's often a small wave of werewolf attacks, but its mostly coincidence, you get some months where nothing at all happens. But I'm never called for those, Benji handles it.’ She did her best to brush her hair and tie it back into some form of ponytail, but failed a few times before trying again.

‘Well, this can't be a werewolf problem then.’ Remus reached down to tie his shoes as quickly as he could. ‘You'll stay safe for me though?’

‘Of course.’ Angelina smiled and leaned down to kiss him with a little more force than usual. ‘Happy birthday Remus, I hope it was a good one.’

‘The best I've ever had.’ He nodded and they both grabbed their green grey jacket and long black coat before they left.

The house was a bit of a mess and Remus felt bad, but no one seemed to care. That was until Angelina tutted and shook her head, she flicked her wand and set the house to clean up itself.

‘Darren let's go!’ Anna called up the stairs. She was rushing around trying to find her coat and explain what was happening. ‘It's Nakamura, he's coming to England, we’re not sure when or why, but seeing as Darren lived in Japan for a while he might be able to help.’

‘Who's Nakamura?’ Remus asked.

‘Dark wizard.’ Angelina took a breath, she was clearly panicked by the statement. ‘Darren said he'd been gathering followers in Japan while he was there, said it was just like when Voldemort came to power.’

Remus felt his heart drop. He didn't quite know what to say first.

‘Remus.’ She held his hand, sensing how he felt. ‘I'm technically a ministry official. I'm expected to do something, but aside from that, you know I can't sit back and do nothing.’

Remus didn't know how to react. She was right, she had a public responsibility to uphold and she had never been one for sitting back and doing nothing while people got hurt.

‘I'll be careful.’ She promised. ‘I won't put myself in unnecessary danger.’

Remus sighed. ‘You'll do what you can, you always have and it scares me to death what that might mean.’ 

 

‘We need to leave.’ My mother yelled. My father had already left for work and Remus needed to get back to the school, it couldn't be left unprotected for any reason.

Before we caught the Floo Network to the ministry, Remus turned me to face him and kissed me deeply. ‘Please come back to me, I can't be without you.’ He whispered and I wrapped my arms around him tightly.

‘I'll always come back to you.’ I told him and suddenly I was flooded with fear, there was a chance that it might not be true.

The ministry was filled with people rushing around, trying to get to one place or another and keeping up with my mother, Darren and Clara was difficult at best. We eventually made it to the Aurors office and I found Benji.

‘There are rumours that he's here already,’ he said, moving me out of the way of people rushing by. ‘But other sources say he won't be ready to launch any kind of attack for months, the bottom line is we have no real idea of what we’re dealing with. Most of the Aurors fought in the Wizarding War and we've been taking our orders from them. They've done this before and aren't likely to make the same mistakes twice.’

‘So, what do we do?’ I noticed that Kingsley and Mad Eye were taking point and my mother was trying to make sense of the intel.

‘At the moment, the only thing we can do is sit in on the meeting and carrying out any tasks we’re given.’ Benji gave me a sympathetic look. ‘I haven't done this before Angie, I have to put my trust in the people who have.’

I nodded and we listened to Kingsley give out the most reliable Intel. It looked to be between a couple of weeks and a few months as being the mostly likely and most opportune time for Nakamura to attack the ministry. Though we couldn't say that for certain and we still had no idea of what he was after. Everyone chimed in with a few possibilities, each one as unlikely as the last and I was beginning to get a sense of how infuriating my mother's profession was. 

Darren had given the limited knowledge he had of Nakamura’s attack patterns and mentioned that he'd seen him destroy an entire street without even giving a second thought. I felt immediately sorry for Darren, but also got the sense that he'd done a little fighting in Japan himself.

Throughout the day, reports had flown in about various attacks taking place, Kingsley didn't pay too much attention until the regularity escalated and the meeting was dismissed to deal with it. Benji stayed along with a few other Aurors and got myself and Darren caught up on the plan of action, though he made it clear it was subject to change constantly. 

I was exhausted by the time I got home and sent a quick message to Remus to tell him as such. 

I'd been put on a team with Benji, Kingsley and a tough looking man called John Dawlish. It meant that at any time I could be called into the ministry to carry out some task or another. I got the impression that Dawlish wasn't especially happy with my being involved, but it had been on the minister’s asking that I help where I can. ‘No point in wasting a good wand.’ He'd said and given me a wink.

Remus had written any chance he got to see how I was and if there was anything he could do, but as I kept reminding him, the safest place for him was in the castle and he would be needed to look after the students if the worst came.

Overall it wasn't being heavily publicised, the ministry didn't want to worry anyone and so decided to keep quiet about any possible attack. According to Benji that meant they could pass it off as not being aware of Nakamura's movements whilst being able to get a little closer to him. 

They had sent a few Aurors in undercover to Japan to gather Intel but after three months of this it stopped, Nakamura was no longer in Japan and had presumably moved to a safe spot in England. Again we had a few ideas of where it might be and kept a close watch on all of them just in case.

Benji was still insistent that they didn't know what he was looking for and whilst we had dinner at Jocelyne and Benji, the topic came up.

‘Surely, some kind of weapon?’ Jack had asked, whilst shovelling a spoonful of curry in his mouth. He looked tired, St Mungo's had been struggling to keep up with the attacks, now that Nakamura was in England he was looking for information and employing any means to get it. 

‘Might not be a weapon, could just be some information.’ Benji thought aloud. ‘There's a lot of information kept at the ministry, things kept in the department of mysteries that would be just as useful to someone.’

‘Like what?’ I asked, getting curious about the information the ministry kept.

‘Well, obviously I can't tell you everything,’ Benji half laughed, but continued anyway. ‘They keep all sorts down there, maps, dark objects of unknown origin, prophecies, even the occasional wand and rusty old cauldron, all of it has a use and all of it can be classed as dangerous.’

‘Is it likely that's what he's after though?’ To all our surprise, it was Jocelyne that asked. Benji took a moment before he answered.

‘That's the first thing we assume any dark witch or wizard is after.’ Benji explained. ‘If someone is going to extreme lengths to find something, chances are the ministry has found it first and has kept it under lock and key. We've not been wrong many times, but when we have it's always been something that appears to be of little or no value to the untrained eye, like a book or a jar, just something everyday you know? Something no one recognised on first sight.’

Jack sat back and took a breath. ‘Well, I hope you find him soon, I can't be doing with any more late nights like the ones this week.’

‘How many have come through?’ I asked, sipping my butterbeer.

‘I lost count.’ Jack half laughed. ‘Too many, I had a man come in the other day who looked to just have a broken arm, but he was shaking, I mean really shaking. Something had spooked him. And this guy was huge, didn't look like anything could scare him. As it turned out, his arm wasn't broken, it had been eaten off by rats and then stuck back on, when we looked closer, it had happened to all of his limbs.’

‘What did you do?’

‘Nothing we can do, he was traumatised and you don't come back from that kind of trauma. He didn't have any family so we put him out of his misery.’ It was clear Jack regretted the decision, he was angry with himself and tried to brush it off, but I knew Jack better than that.

We soon got on to happier subjects and talked about David and Cassie getting engaged. They still hadn't set a date yet, but David would finish his two years training in a couple of months and he decided to come back home and work for the ministry, in the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. He would make a good fit there and I hoped he did well. 

I had been slightly suspicious of Jocelyne who usually piled on the butterbeer better than anyone, had yet to drink anything but pumpkin juice or water. I'd briefly noticed this a few weeks before when I'd gone over for dinner with her, but thought she wasn't in the mood. Benji had told me she wasn't well recently as well and while I had a day off, I thought I'd see if she wanted the company, but she didn't show any signs of a bug or a cold, she was just tired. Her breathing was off as well, it was shallower. I wondered if there was something more seriously wrong with her. 

 

Remus was a little excited, Angelina was visiting the school with Benji. It was passed off as a simple visit to see their old teachers, but in reality they were there to carry out a routine patrol given the circumstances. 

Dumbledore was at the front doors to greet them and embraced them like his children. Remus had gotten caught up in conversation with one of his sixth Ravenclaw admirers and was a little uncomfortable with the proximity. Most of the others had found other people to capture their attention, but Miss Caruthers seemed to still be fixated on him. It was easier to avoid her when she wasn't in a group, Remus felt a bit bad about it, but he wasn't about to encourage her.

He caught Angelina's eye and smiled, when he turned back he could see Caruthers was a little hurt.

‘Why don't we continue this conversation tomorrow morning in my classroom?’ He sympathised a little. She nodded and wandered away. Remus almost skipped up to where Angelina and Benji were now laughing with Dumbledore about something that had happened last week.

‘Remus.’ Benji nodded and shook Remus's hand.

‘Benji, how are you?’

‘Good, bit tired chasing dark wizards with Angie, but she keeps me fit, so can't complain.’ He'd always had something handsome about him and Remus could see now, it was in his smile. 

‘Wonderful, and Jocelyne?’

‘She's good.’ 

Angelina had a small frown on, but Remus managed to erase it when Dumbledore and Benji walked ahead towards the dungeons and he slid his hand over hers.

‘Are you alright? You look tired.’ He said as they began walking as well.

‘I'm fine.’ She smiled and leaned into his arm, holding it against her. He didn't mind, not in the slightest. Remus didn't even really care that some of his students were seeing him in a new light, he wasn't one for showing public affection, but then most students were in exams and he'd missed Angelina so much.

They arrived at down at the dungeons and Snape had been his usual unpleasant self. Benji had carried out the routine inspection, finding little traces of dark magic, that are found in most potion rooms and they moved on. Remus had left at one point to check on the charms exam, they still had an hour left.

A couple of hours later and Angelina was leaving again. Benji was deep in conversation with Dumbledore and McGonagall and Remus took this opportunity to hold Angelina. ‘I'll miss you.’ He whispered into her hair.

‘Well, it's not forever.’ She laughed and pulled back to see him. There was a question sitting just behind her eyes.

‘Would you like to voice your question or am I going to have to wait a little longer?’ Remus teased. She smiled and shook her head lightly.

‘Okay, so I'm going to give you a list of symptoms and you tell me what it means?’ 

‘Okay.’ Remus said slowly and waited for her to think.

‘Intolerance to alcohol,’ she began listing them off on her hand. ‘Shallow breath, sudden sickness and constant exhaustion.’

‘You realise I'm not a healer?’ Remus laughed and she rolled her eyes. ‘Well, it doesn't sound too serious, but it does sound familiar-‘

‘Angie.’ Benji suddenly called. ‘We have to go. Kingsley’s waiting.’

Angelina nodded and Remus suddenly remembered where he'd seen those symptoms before. Angelina quickly kissed his cheek, but he was frozen to the spot.

‘I'll write tonight.’ She said and smiled again. Remus tried to smile back but found it difficult. ‘And I promise, I'll be careful.’

And with that she bounded off towards where Benji was walking back to the gates.

‘You look like you've seen a ghost, Remus.’ Dumbledore commented as he walked past Remus towards his office.

How could he possibly have done this? How could he have not been more careful? It must have been on his birthday, she was uncharacteristically adventurous and he presumed she was simply a little drunk. He didn't push anything though, he was careful with how to approach her sense of adventure, maybe he'd been distracted by that and not paid attention?

Remus went back to the exam room and sat at the back thinking on what he was going to do about Angelina's pregnancy. James and Lily seemed like the people who could help him the most, but it seemed Angelina didn't even know what was happening to her own body. 

His mind was cast back to the conversation with Jocelyne in Pompeii, about how she wished she'd had the talk with Angelina. It put a small smile on his face. That was one of the reasons he loved her, she was awkward and a little unsteady, but willing to try and learn. She was never scared of failing, the blush that ran across her cheeks when she got it wrong though; it was one of his favourite things to see.

But this couldn't happen. Werewolves weren't supposed to breed, his condition was torturous on him as a man, how could he pass that onto a child? To intentionally inflict an innocent child with this kind of pain, it was likely that they wouldn't make it past the first month and he couldn't bare to think what it might have been doing to Angelina while she carried something of him inside her.

He needed to talk to her, to James and Lily, to Clara, to someone.

‘Maybe you read the signs wrong?’ Lily suggested. Remus decided to talk to her through the fire, if anyone knew about this it might have been her. ‘Maybe she's just tired from working and with all the plants in her lab, it's put her off alcohol and made her sick?’

‘Does that sound like Angelina to you?’ Remus shot back, he rubbed his face. ‘She would know if something in her lab was making her ill and she's been tired for the last three months, she hasn't just noticed it.’

Lily sighed. ‘You're going to have to talk to her. Werewolves have never bred in human form before, at least there's no documented cases. And in case you're forgetting, the love of your life is an expert on your condition, chances are she will know or at least accurately predict what will happen if she is pregnant.’

It was Remus's turn to sigh. ‘I suppose you're right.’

‘Talk to her Remus. She's worked hard so that you could have a chance at a normal life, this is what it looks like.’

Remus gave Lily a small smile and nodded. ‘Alright, I'll let you know how it goes. Don't tell George anything, he either knows and hasn't said anything or doesn't know at all and I'd rather he heard it from Angelina.’

‘Of course. Good night Remus and good luck.’ And with that she was gone. Remus sat in his comfy armchair in his office a little longer, his eye was drawn to the picture frame on his desk. He'd kept the picture in his room for a while, but felt when he most needed to see her was when he was working at his desk. 

 

‘It feels the same as it did ten years ago.’ Darren said, handing me a chocolate frog and sighing. He'd been doing really well with the Falcons and looked to be getting fitter and stronger with every match, he was even picked for the World Cup team, the youngest player that had been chosen that year. ‘I remember being about eight and mum was gone for ages, felt like weeks, she just wasn't there and dad looked after us, took loads of time off work to do it… it got better for a while, mum was still in and out of the house, but it was like we were suffocating for so long and then we could suddenly breathe again when it was all over… it feels like that.’

I nodded and looked out at the view from our back garden. Darren had a day off training and I had spent most of the day studying in my lab before we went to sit outside. I hadn't heard from Remus, but I'd seen a note from him in the back of my book which I'd forgotten to read before heading downstairs.

‘My first memory of the war,’ I sat back and handed Darren the card from the chocolate frog packet. ‘Is dad telling us both to hide, I thought we were playing a game, thought dad was trying to keep us cheerful or something. I remember being five years old and you told me to hide in the cupboard under the sink, said not to come out until you came to get me… I kept the door closed for the longest time and then for some reason, I opened the door just a crack to see if dad was looking for me. The only thing I could see was lights, just bright lights, green and red and blue and yellow. I could see you hiding behind a chair and you told me to close the door and stay where I was.’

Darren half laughed and nodded. ‘I remember that, a group of wizards came to the house because they thought mum was here, I don't know what she did, but apparently they didn't like it… dad fought them off, he was so quick, I'd never seen anyone move like him. They could've fired off a hundred stunners all at once and he could've stopped them. I wanted to be just like him, I wanted to be as quick and powerful as him. I thought by keeping you safe he would think I was a hero like him, but it was a war and dad said that anyone who did their part was a hero as far as he was concerned.’

We sat for a few moments longer, just feeling the sun on our faces and taking in the peace that surrounded us. 

‘Do you think it's true?’ Darren suddenly asked. I looked at him and frowned. ‘That in the end, the brothers will try to kill each other?’

I sighed and thought about it. ‘I don't know. I think it would take a lot for them to come back in human form, I think they can only use our bodies to fight each other and I think it would take an impossible amount for us to allow that to happen.’

Darren chuckled slightly. ‘That's not an answer.’

‘Of course it is.’ I shot back. ‘We can stop this, we can find a way to destroy them and we can live long, happy lives.’

‘You think so?’

I nodded and smiled. ‘I do… I love you Darren, no one loves you the way I do and that's something that will never change.’ 

We sat out in the sun until it went down, we joked and drank and soon went to bed, still exhausted. 

Remus had wanted to speak to me, but said it was better to do it in person, I didn't have a lot of time to see him, but I promised I would come to the school on my next day off.

That day seemed to get further and further away, Benji and I had been pulled in every direction, putting out fires and claiming it as some small incident, but we couldn't keep it up for long, someone was going to notice what was really going on.

Dawlish had been caught by some unknown spell during a small scuffle and Benji had ordered me to take him to St Mungo's. Jack was the first person I saw who could help. We put him down on one of the beds and Jack immediately got to work. I stood back just trying to catch my breath and eventually it was all under control.

‘Good thing you brought him when you did.’ Jack said, a little out of breath. ‘He should be fine after a night's rest. Are you alright?’

‘Yeah, just a bit sore.’ I chuckled.

‘Here, let me get you something to help.’ Jack wandered away and soon came back with a recovery potion. I felt so much better afterwards and Jack sat with me, he looked like he needed a good night's sleep as well. ‘Thanks.’ He rolled his eyes. ‘Oh by the way, that Anti Flaring balm, works wonders on healing the initial wounds, no scarring.’

I nodded. ‘Remus said one of his scars disappeared entirely. One from when he was still school.’

‘Probably the lavender and dittany, it's not usually mixed in such high quantities.’ Jack thought out aloud.

‘That's what I said.’ I smiled. It was nice to know Jack was taking his position as the lead healer on werewolf cases, seriously. He was smart and logical and his creativity did him all the favours in the world. ‘So, do you know what's going on with Jocelyne? Benji said she's been ill recently?’

Jack rolled his eyes and half smiled. ‘Yeah, she's pregnant.’ My eyes hurt, they were so wide. ‘I think he forgets that I work with pregnant women more than he does, I noticed she wasn't drinking the last few times we've gone over for dinner and her breathing is a bit shallow. Usually early signs of pregnancy, I'd say she was about three or four months gone.’

‘Has Benji said anything to you?’ I couldn't believe how excited I was for them.

‘No, but he's an idiot if he thinks I can't recognise a pregnancy when I see it.’ Jack laughed. ‘When they're ready, they'll let us know.’

‘Yeah, I suppose so.’ I couldn't get rid of the smile on my face. ‘I'm so happy for them.’

Jack chuckled slightly. ‘I think Jack is a good name for a boy. Jackie for a girl.’

‘Oh and you think they'll name their child after you?! I basically cured werewolves, much better contender.’ I teased back.

‘True, but I'm funnier than you and probably smarter… better looking.’ We couldn't help our giggling and soon a healer had come around to find Jack, apparently someone needed his help. ‘See you soon, Angie.’ Jack winked as he left and I sorely missed the feeling of my face turning into a smile whenever I spoke to him. Life was just different now we were grown up and out of Hogwarts.


	11. The Storm

It was a week later, Benji and I were sent with a few other Aurors to patrol Diagon Alley, there was strong evidence to suggest an attack was about to take place. We didn't know who we were looking for and we didn't know what to expect, but we were on high alert.

The brother had perked up and was whispering in the back of my mind, I told Benji as such.

‘Well, maybe he can help, like last time with Karkaroff?’ Benji said just as quietly as I had told him about it.

‘Maybe, I don't want to give him too much access though.’ I warned. ‘If I allow him to take any kind of control, it might breed worse consequences down the line.’

‘Angie, I don't have to take control for that.’ The brother coughed. ‘Just trust your instincts and you'll be fine.’

‘We might not have a choice, if we fail to stop Nakamura attacking now, a war could break out.’ Benji sighed, he was beginning to look older. I'd heard from Jocelyne that he was being kept at the office for longer periods given his new position and a part of me felt guilty.

I suddenly stopped in the middle of the street, Benji was a couple of steps in front of me and turned to see me.

‘Angie?’ He said and frowned at me.

Something had walked past me, someone had walked past, someone I needed to see. I turned around and looked at the heads walking away from me, none of them looked out of place or particularly note worthy, but it was as if tiny strands of magic were leading the way, it was as if I could feel streams beneath my fingers.

‘Angie, where are we going?’ Benji panted as he caught up.

‘I don't know.’ I shook my head. 

‘Angie,’ the brother whispered. ‘It's a dark trail, nothing more. It's not what we’re looking for, you need to focus on something more powerful, you'll know it when you see it.’

‘He says it's just a dark trail,’ I relayed back to Benji. ‘He says I'll know it for sure when I see it.’

‘Okay, well a patrol should be coming this way soon, lets keep moving forward.’ Benji guided me back down the street and we continued walking around for a few hours, until it began to get dark, occasionally I would feel a slight pull of darkness, but it was easily ignored and not what I was looking for.

It was like an extreme force of nature passing through me, enough to make me grasp my chest and struggle to gulp down as much air as possible. Benji knelt down to where I'd been knocked off guard.

‘Angie.’ He tried to yell, but it just sounded like dull water. ‘Angie, we’re going to warn the ministry, Kingsley can handle it.’ He said and as clear as day, I saw him. Nakamura. He looked like some ancient Japanese warrior. His body was strong and his untidy tunic clung to his tall frame and made him look even bigger. His dark, beady eyes, locked with mine and it was like he could see the brother inside me. His gaze sent an unpleasant shiver down my spine.

‘Get her out of here!’ Kingsley roared and Benji lifted me up. We began running as fast as we could up the street to safely apparate away to the reception of the ministry.

‘Angie, that was him.’ The brother hissed.

‘Yeah, I figured that out for myself thanks.’ The cool air of the ministry was a godsend compared to Diagon Alley.

‘What?’ Benji frowned. I just shook my head, indicating it was the brother who had spoken to me.

‘Angie, he's coming.’ The brother yelled and I gave Benji a worried look.

‘He's following us.’ I told him and we began racing towards the fountain in the reception.

‘He can't be!’ Benji yelled, but before I could argue back, the force was back and I couldn't stand any longer. I hit the floor hard and again struggled to breathe.

‘Remus.’ I choked. ‘Help me.’ It was all I could muster.

‘Angie, I can’t help you fight, but I can take away how it feels.’ It was if everything suddenly became clear. I wasn't blinded by being unable to breathe and my chest opened up for me to gulp down as much air as possible. By the time I'd managed to get back to my feet, a fight had broken out. Nakamura and a few dozen followers were making quick work of the Aurors that stood in front of them.

‘Angie!’ I turned to see Darren beckoning me behind the fountain. I slipped around and took cover with him. 

‘Jack?’ I frowned. He was crouching down behind the fountain as well.

‘I came to see Benji.’ He quickly explained, stunners and curses were flying everywhere, missing us by narrow margins. ‘What do we do?’ He shouted and Darren and I looked at each other.

‘We can't hide forever.’ Darren said. ‘We have to help Benji and mum.’ Darren pointed to where my mother had managed to finish off two burly wizards coming at her, but she couldn't keep it up.

‘There's too many, we need to take down Nakamura.’ I told them. ‘We need to distract and target.’

‘Right.’ Darren nodded and the three of us began running out from behind the statue, sending off stunners wherever we could. We found Benji again and quickly explained that three of us needed to distract Nakamura while someone else got in position to take him down. 

It was hard to get close with so many followers firing off spells as quickly as they did, it was taking forever, every time we got closer, we were sent back a few paces and worn down. I saw someone get Dawlish out of the corner of my eye, but before I could see if he was okay, I found myself in battle with a small witch who was quicker than anyone else. She seemed to be fighting with her hand and her wand to send spells, I tried to block everything I could, until a stunner caught my chest. 

It was broken. That was certain. I'd hit the edge of the fountain at the wrong angle and felt the snapping of my spine. It was agony and I wailed out in pain.

‘Angie!’ The brother shouted, it was deafening in my ears. ‘He's got your wand. You need to get up.’

‘I can't.’ It hurt to talk.

‘I can take away the pain, but you need to get your wand back.’ The brother was insistent. ‘Nakamura cannot hold an elder wand, it's too powerful and no one will be able to stop him. Trust your wand.’

It took a moment, but the pain was suddenly gone.

‘Spines can be repaired, people's lives cannot and he will kill people if you don't do something.’ The brother encouraged me as I crawled to my knees. I could taste blood in my mouth and knew it was a bad sign. The fighting seemed to have halted, Nakamura was watching me curiously and there didn't seem to be anyone left able to fight him off. Jack and Benji had been hit badly and Darren was crouched over my mother who appeared to still be alive, just unconscious. ‘Angie, remember how strong you are. Trust your wand!’

I struggled up to my feet and took a step towards Nakamura who was grinning a yellow toothed grin. The woman who had broken my spine was standing close to him and in his hand, was my wand. It took me a little longer and my chest felt tight again, I could barely get to my feet this time and there was definitely blood running down the side of my face. 

‘Give up!’ Nakamura’s voice was hushed and soft, but it was full of something sickening. ‘I have what I came for and you are defenceless.’

‘My wand?’ I choked out and began coughing violently, it was painful enough. But it was enough to get me to my feet again.

‘Elder.’ His rough, yellow nailed fingers ran over the length of my pale wand and I felt a hatred and if he was doing the same thing to me. ‘So powerful. I feel it.’ Nakamura breathed with his whole body, adjusted his position so he was facing me properly.

‘Angie, its your wand, trust it!’ The brother implored again.

‘My wands allegiance, is to the most powerful person in the room.’ It was no use, I couldn't stay standing any longer and I felt my knee crack as I fell onto it. ‘In any room.’

Nakamura laughed as did his remaining eight followers, each of them gathered around him, holding onto different wizards as hostages, including Benji and Jack and laughed with him.

‘I am the most powerful wizard here!’ Nakamura suddenly roared. ‘I am done with you.’ He pointed my wand towards me and smiled. ‘But my men might not be.’ I suddenly saw someone launching themselves towards me out of the corner of my eye. When did Remus get here? It had been James Potter who stopped him. When did any of these people get here?

‘Angie, brace yourself.’ The brother seemed very worried all of a sudden. ‘You can do this, I promise, you will survive.’

‘Do what you like with her.’ Nakamura said quietly to his the woman next to him. ‘And bring me that man.’ He pointed straight to Remus. Fear flooded me and I felt a surge of energy, a readiness to fight.

Remus struggled in the grasp of two of Nakamura's followers until he was forced to kneel close to Nakamura. 

That was when I felt my joints exploding beneath me, someone was inflicting the cruciatis curse on me. But suddenly the pain was gone.

‘Angie, we can do this, ignore the pain, make him believe he cannot hurt you.’ The brother yelled and it sounded as if he was putting up his own fight inside of me.

I managed to find energy enough to stand and the woman blinked, confused. She had been the one to inflict the curse, she tried it again and once again there was a momentary flash of pain, before it was gone.

‘Enough!’ Nakamura yelled. I couldn't breathe, my chest had collapsed, I was sure of it. Nakamura raised my wand once again. ‘Any last words, before I kill you with your own wand.’ Remus struggled harder than ever, but it was no use. I took whatever breath I could.

‘I trust my wand.’ I said it to myself more than anything. I believed it, I trusted my wand.

‘Avada Kedavra.’ It was said with no more than a whisper, but it was firm. I closed my eyes and prayed I would open them to find myself in a peaceful place, with Remus, with my family, my friends all laughing and having fun.

But I opened my eyes to see Nakamura’s startled expression. It hadn't worked. I could feel my wand again though. It was hatred, hatred towards the person holding it.

‘Your wand Angie, get your wand back. Trust it.’ I held my hand out and begged my wand to come back, as soon as I thought it, my wand whipped out of Nakamura's hand and into mine. Without skipping a beat, I swiped my wand to free the wizards held hostage and sent a powerful stunner towards the small woman next to Nakamura. Kingsley was on her in a flash. Remus was pulled back by James and I was thrust into a fierce battle with Nakamura.

He was so strong and quick, he was also fighting with both his hand and his wand, I didn't stand a chance. I wasn't well practised in fighting without my wand. It was another stunner straight to my leg this time and I felt my head hit the floor harder than the last time, it was probably a concussion. I managed to get back up and saw that Darren, Jack and Benji were all fighting Nakamura from different sides.

‘Angie.’ 

‘I know, I have to get up.’ I told the brother, who still felt like he was putting up a fight.

Before I was even on my feet I was sending whatever I could at Nakamura. It seemed his followers had been dealt with, it was just the four of us against him left and he was losing, though not as quickly as we would have liked.

‘Angie.’ Jack called as he blocked a stunner and shot off one of his own. ‘Ring of fire?’ I couldn't help my suddenly laugh. It was just like old times.

 

Remus’s legs were weak, he could barely stand and he was fairly sure one of the followers had broken his arm when he was being restrained, but he did, in case Angelina needed him.

Dumbledore had arrived soon after him, but to his anger, had not stepped in to help Angelina. He could have disarmed Nakamura in a heartbeat, but instead he watched and waited the same as everyone else.

Remus had arrived at the ministry after receiving an owl from James that he'd be going to see someone in the magical games and sports department, he thought he'd tag along and chance seeing Angelina, it had been too long since seeing Angelina and they still had not talked about their unborn child, Remus needed to make her see that people like him weren't supposed to have children for a reason. And now here she was, risking not jus their life, but that of their child.

He had tried to keep up with what was going on, but it seemed the ministry was keeping it quiet in case it was a false alarm, there was no need to worry people if there wasn't any reason to. Remus disapproved, but kept his opinion to himself.

James was doing his best to stop the bleeding on another wizard that Remus didn't recognise, they did what they could to help while Angelina, Darren, Jack and Benji began shooting fire spinners towards Nakamura, Remus recognised it as one of Angelina and Jack’s tricks they would do for the first years in the courtyard. Jack was the first to latch on and soon Nakamura was left open to the rage of the fire spin of four powerful people. 

A few stray spells had been fired off from within the ring of fire as Nakamura tried to escape, Darren had been caught by a stunner in the shoulder and sent backwards towards the fountain, while Benji fired in restraints for Nakamura and the ring dropped down. All that was left was a writhing wizard, defenceless and restrained.

Jack was no where to be seen, Angelina and Benji celebrated for just a moment before realising the same. Remus looked to a new pile of rubble that had form at the far end of the ministry reception and could just about see Jack’s hand lying limp out of it.

‘No.’ Angelina cried and sprinted as hard as she could.

 

He couldn't be gone, it wasn't fair, after everything they had done, they stopped Nakamura, they took down a dark wizard and stopped an attack on the ministry, it wasn't fair!

I slipped and fell towards the pile of rubble, I'd vaguely seen something falling, but with everything that was going on, I thought it had missed Jack. I moved as much of it as I could, shovelling away the green tiles and concrete stones with my shaking hands and finally found him. There was blood everywhere, his torso was covered and he was unable to move properly. I pulled him up and tried to find out where the bleeding was coming from.

‘Angie.’ He whispered. A small trail of blood poured from his mouth and dirt covered his handsome features, he was still handsome, his ruffled blonde hair, now littered with concrete dust and glass and his eyes, I don't think I'd ever noticed they were grey before, why didn't I notice that? 

‘Jack, you're going to be okay.’ I just had to get him to St Mungo's and he really would be. ‘You're going to be fine, just stay awake for me.’

‘Angie.’ He said again and I could already feel the tears escaping my eyes. ‘I'm a healer, I know when it's a lost cause.’ 

‘No, no, it's not.’ I tried to have confidence in my words, but it seemed Jack was grasping the reality better than anyone. Benji had limped over and knew what was about to happen. ‘It's not a lost cause, okay, you can't… we still have to do things.’

‘Angie, I never wanted to be a healer.’ It was becoming increasingly difficult for him to speak. ‘I became one so that you would notice me. It's seems so stupid now… I thought if I became a healer, I had a good job, could provide for you, make you happy, make you laugh… you'd notice how much I loved you.’

‘What do you mean?’ He was delirious, he wasn't making sense.

‘I was always in love with you, but you never noticed.’ It was such a faint frown, his face had become so pale and my arms were growing weak around him. ‘I suppose I get this though, one last look at you… so beautiful.’ It was like he was committing every part of my face to memory.

‘Jack, you can't go.’ My face was burning with the tears. ‘We have to do things, we have to fight over… who gets to be godparents, we have to… to get drunk, go back to Hogwarts and put on a show… we have to do things Jack.’

‘Your red dress, it fit you perfectly.’ He said and I could see his eyes flickering, replaying a memory. ‘We can't dance, we forgot the moves, but it didn't matter.’ It was the Yule Ball, I was still trying to stop the bleeding, wherever it came from, but I still couldn't find it. My own hands were shaking too much. ‘You laughed and tears came out and I was happy.’ Jack had tried to move his hand up and I helped him, I held it against my face, he was so cold and pale. ‘We kissed and I felt warm under my skin, I could feel you, all of you and I knew.’

‘We can do it again, we can dance again Jack, you just have to stay awake.’ 

Jack smiled and shook his head slightly. ‘I love you Angie.’

It was like that twinkle, the bright light in the corner of his eyes that made him Jack was suddenly fading faster than ever. 

‘Jack.’ My voice was scratchy and shaking. ‘No, please, please, don't leave me. Don't go.’ The light was gone and I couldn't stop myself, my throat ached and scratched and my chest heaved with pain. He was somehow heavier than he'd ever been, but I wouldn't let go. He was my best friend and if I just kept a hold of him, if I just screamed loud enough, maybe, he'd come back. Maybe we could have dinner again, get drunk and dance towards the café to have breakfast, we could show off again in the courtyard, we could go back to Hogwarts and get the boats to the castle, tease each other and dream about things that didn't matter.

But none of that would happen, the brother would fail to stop the pain in my spine any longer and I simply fell backwards and stared up at the darkened ceiling of the ministry, nothing was worth this. Nothing in the world was worth my best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unsure when the next set of chapters will be up, but I hope you enjoy what's been happening so far, Angie's struggles and Remus's occasional flirty comment. 
> 
> I would say that this is simply how I imagine a relationship would go with him, if he could have a normal life how would he go about it? A million possibilities and this is the one I've decided to explore.


	12. Grief and Recovery

She didn't speak, she didn't cry, she didn't show any real signs of life. George had put her to sleep while her back was being mended so that she didn't need to suffer, but woke her up for the funeral.

She wore her black jeans, t shirt and blazer and sat in a wheelchair while the service went on. Benji and Jocelyne could barely stop crying and David was struggling to hold it together. But Angelina did nothing, gave no sign that she had even comprehended what had really happened.

Remus kept a close eye on her and knew when she was beginning to feel the pain of her spine, at which point George would hand over a flask filled with a pain reliever. Not a single person left the grave without having shed a tear. Except Angelina, she remained motionless. Numb.

‘We can leave whenever you like.’ Remus had knelt down to whisper quietly next to her, but again she gave no indication she even heard him.

Jack’s parents were seen by everyone, including George and Anna who allowed them to vent a little before moving for someone else to tell them how sorry they were. Benji, Jocelyne and David sat next to Angelina, all of them in their black suits and dress. It was a sorry sight to see two of the four cut and bruised over every bit of exposed skin, all of it as a result of a battle they didn't want. Remus couldn't give them any words of comfort, so instead he let them grieve together for a while.

‘Has she said anything?’ Anna said, just out of earshot of Angelina. He shook his head and shifted uncomfortably. His arm still had a bandage over it and his face still hadn't quite healed up yet. He could feel his hip bothering him, but he'd been through worse before now and simply ignored it as best he could. ‘Will you come with us to take her back to St Mungo's? I think she feels better when you're around.’

‘Of course.’ Remus nodded. ‘I think she's best left to grieve for a while though, she won't get the same time as everyone else if George is putting her back to sleep.’ They stood at the back of the emptying seats and watched the four young friends mourn the loss of Jack Rathborne.

Dumbledore had allowed Remus the week to rest, but he decided to only take the day of the funeral off. He only had marking to do anyway and it was hardly gruelling, McGonagall had offered her assistance once she finished marking transfiguration and Remus appreciated it greatly.

The coffin began lowering into the ground and it was just about the only time Angelina showed signs of life. Remus could hear her sniffing and trying not to cry, he wandered over and gently placed his hand over her shoulder, which she immediately grabbed and held against her face. He could feel her hoping that the tighter she held his hand, the better chance she had at not crying, but it was no good.

The lid was closed and the coffin was finally deep in the ground, shovels had picked themselves up and began pouring soil into the hole. Angelina took a deep breath and cleared her throat.

‘You stood behind me,’ she said. ‘You heard what he said, did you know?’

Benji shifted uncomfortably. ‘Yeah.’ He said hoarsely. ‘Yeah, I knew.’

Remus didn't know what they were referring to, but suddenly Angelina was angry, she looked away from Benji unable to quite believe he was still sitting there. ‘Someone should have told me, if not him, you should have said something.’

‘What would the point have been, Angie?’ Benji stood up, clearly unimpressed with her comments. ‘Why bother bringing up the past when you're so happy with the present?’

‘Benji-‘ Jocelyne tried to touch his arm, to calm her husband down.

‘No, let me say it. Let me say what we are all thinking…’ Benji almost looked disgusted. ‘He wanted… you were happy, its all he ever wanted and he didn't care that it wasn't with him, but he built the foundations of a future so that if one day you're no longer happy… but no, no you were too busy playing with wolves to even notice the real reason he and Tonks broke up. She found out he was still in love with you and she left… he never forgave himself for not fighting harder for you, would've prevented a lot of heartache for the both of them.’ Benji went to walk away, before turning back to have one more jab. ‘Did you even notice… do you even care?’ He didn't wait for a reply, Benji just stormed off and David was left to hold Jocelyne while she sobbed into his arms.

Angelina had gone back to being motionless. Remus suspected that the majority of the remaining mourners, now had their gaze firmly fixed on Angelina, but he didn't dare look around, he just continued to stand next to her until it was time to go.

George wheeled her into her private room and she downed the sleeping potion in one. Remus hated to see it, how hurt she was, but he was aware of the heartache it brings to lose one of your friends so young.

She curled up and fell asleep within seconds and George carefully helped her lie flat so that her spine could be repaired properly. He came to stand with Remus and sighed.

‘The lengths I would go to, to protect my children is unfathomable… but there's no protecting them from this.’ He said sadly and gently squeezed Remus's shoulder. ‘I'll send you an owl and let you know when we wake her up again, I'd like you to be here when she does.’

‘Of course.’ Remus nodded and attempted a smile, but it was little good, there was no cause for smiling. 

George did the same and headed off to do his job, that was when Remus saw the red hair of Lily walking towards him, she looked like she felt sorry for him and Remus half hated it.

‘How are you?’ She gave him a gentle hug, being careful of his injuries.

‘Better than some.’

Lily sighed. ‘I imagine you're one of the only people who can empathise with her. It was hard to take Peter's death, James didn't stop looking for Sirius right up until he was confirmed as arrested. Seemed to help him feel a bit better, doing something practical.’

‘I know the feeling.’ Remus had wanted to help, but given his injuries from the war, he couldn't leave his bed for a week, let alone go bounding off searching for someone who knew how to hide.

‘Well, this will cheer you up a bit.’ Remus frowned as Lily stepped closer to him. ‘She's not pregnant.’ She whispered.

‘What do you mean?’ Remus didn't quite understand, had she lost the baby during the fighting? Did she get rid of it herself?

‘I checked when George wasn't looking, before I knew what had happened.’ Lily explained. ‘She was never pregnant.’

Someone had suddenly called Lily from another ward and she gave Remus a small comfort smile before rushing off. 

Remus sat down for a few moments to think. Angelina wasn't pregnant, he wasn't sure if he was happy or not, he'd panicked, he'd played out a conversation in his mind telling her why he couldn't have children, he'd gone over every possible outcome of that conversation and none of it involved her telling him she wasn't pregnant. Maybe Lily was mistaken and Angelina had lost the child in the fighting, maybe it was a false negative. Wait a second, did he want her to be pregnant? If he wasn't a werewolf, would he want to have children with her? The answer to that one was, of course he would, he'd have as many as they could handle. So why was he so upset by the news?

 

‘How can you just lie there?!’ I roared. Every piece of furniture I had just upturned out of rage was now sitting perfectly still, back in its original position. The bed I had crawled out of was filled with the brother, arms folded behind his head and I could hear the annoying small snores coming from him occasionally.

His eyes flickered open and he took in a breath, turning his soft brown eyes to watch me. ‘There's not much else I can do down here and you seemed to be occupied with destroying everything. So I thought, best leave you to it.’

My rage returned tenfold. The armchairs, bookshelves, glass cabinets, everything I could get my hands on, was instantly on the floor shattered or broken. I couldn't do it anymore, I fell forward onto my knees and cried harder than I had ever cried before. It felt like hours and it didn't stop, the tears kept forming, the screams got louder until finally, I let myself fall onto my side and take deep breaths the way Remus used to tell me. I had a sudden thought that put a new kind of rage inside me.

‘Was it you?’ I asked and the brother shifted on the bed. ‘Did you do this to me? Was I supposed to end up with Jack?’

He swung his legs over the side of the bed and sighed. It took him a few moments to respond. ‘If I did do this to you, it was never consciously. If you want to blame me, that's fine… but I ask you this, you think I had something to do with the man you've fallen for, because Darren fell for Clara, a werewolf, because you and Jack just got on so well in school, because you don't know the word to describe how you feel about Lupin, so it can't possibly be love, because you have an unnatural fascination for werewolves that could only have come from my existing inside you?’

I pushed myself up to sit and watch him.

‘Did it ever cross your mind that it's just coincidence?’ He jumped down and approached me. I wiped my face with the hem of my white t shirt and tried to not make it obvious that I hadn't thought about this. The brother sat down in front of me. ‘Let me propose an idea, I'm not trying to force the idea on you, I just want you to play with it… I'm Remus, I believe in love and kindness and intelligence. You value these things, you put a price on them, that price being your life. You would go to the Alban Hills for a piece of information, you would apparate fifteen hundred miles because the man you loved was there, you would help a young student understand nonverbal magic even though you were hurting.’

I sniffed and wondered what exactly his point was.

‘Angie, you did those things, apart from the apparating, you did those amazing things.’ The brother suddenly had a look of wonder about him. ‘I woke up a long time ago and have kept your body healthy since, but only your body. I took away your physical pain, I can't do that with your mind. I don't have access and I'll never try to gain access, unlike Romulus. I told you before I have had no influence on your life, save keeping you alive and that is instinct for me. I told you before I pushed the poison of the lion fish out, but I was asleep then, the part of me that lives in you would never let you die.’

‘What are you trying to say?’ I'd heard all this before, made the connections a hundred times myself.

‘I'm trying to make you see that, I can't influence the way you feel. We share this body, but we don't share your mind. I can sit on the edge of your consciousness, I can use much of my will to communicate with you if I feel the need, but I cannot put ideas in your head and I cannot make you fall in love with someone. You are the one that controls that. You were never meant to be with Jack, you were meant to be with the kindest, wisest and wonderfully patient man you have ever met and that was Lupin.’

I sniffed again and looked away from those brown eyes. ‘So you're saying that… I really didn't notice the way Jack felt?’

‘I am trying to do my best to allow the pieces of yourself that are not related to me, to remain after I'm gone. One of those pieces is, as so many people have said before, your inability to assess social situations. I find it rather charming if that's any consolation and I think Lupin probably does as well.’

I couldn't help my small smile at that. I really hoped Remus found me somewhat charming, otherwise I really didn't know what he saw in me.

‘Angie, I can see what you see, hear what you hear, but I can't access your thoughts, it wouldn't be right of me to do so… I want to work with you, I want this to be a form of partnership, we both live here and neither of us want to see Darren suffer, we both want myself and my brother gone, so why don't we work together on it?’

‘Because… I still can't be sure of who you are. I can't be certain you're Remus and like you said any evidence you give me is feeble at best… and you refused to help me translate those runes. I'm finding it hard to trust you.’

The brother sat back and nodded slightly. ‘I understand… I could give you perfect vision.’ I frowned. ‘I can affect your physical being, wolves tend to have pretty good eye sight and better hearing, I could give you that in your human form, but you still wear glasses, that's because you don't have perfect vision, I do. Do you see what I'm saying?’

‘Yeah, I do.’ I looked away, this wasn't exactly what I wanted to talk about. ‘I want to be me, you're trying to let me do that, I get it.’

The brother sighed and considered me. ‘I'm sorry about Jack, I couldn't have anticipated it and I couldn't have helped you save him, but if I could have changed anything, I would have.’

It took a moment, a moment of agonising clarity, I could feel the screams and anger bubbling at the back of my mouth, ready to leap out. ‘He's gone… there's nothing left of him, he's gone.’ The screams left my lungs with such force, I was fairly certain anyone looking down at my body, could tell I was in pain. 

Why him? Of all the people in whole world, why Jack Rathborne? He only ever helped people and was incredibly kind to the worst kind of person, he deserved a full life, he deserved to live, at least a few more years, he deserved to find out who he really was and what his role was in this world. 

I spent all my time staring up at the white space above me, thinking on all the conversations I'd had with Jack, just tracing over his memory, hoping that some part of him would come back to me. Why didn't we spend more time together? Why didn't I notice anything?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unsure of when I'll be updating again as I'm away for a while and then straight back into another busy period. Having said that, I may well find the time to upload one chapter every so often.
> 
> I hope you're all enjoying it and as usual if you'd like to contact me, you can either leave a comment or if it's a much longer statement, feel free to email me at jadders92@hotmail.com
> 
> Have a great day everyone!


	13. Life Goes On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this one is a little different to the rest, I hope you enjoy it, it took me ages to get it right!
> 
> As usual you can contact me at jadders92@hotmail.com and I'm also on tumblr now jadders92 is my user on that as well.
> 
> Enjoy!

‘I'm afraid I can't answer your questions.’ George said angrily to what looked to be Dolores Umbridge, flanked by Kingsley and Dawlish. Remus had come back to St Mungo's to see Angelina again, he'd been there only once since the funeral, mostly to talk to her about how he was feeling, she was still sleeping and wouldn't be woken up until she was mostly healed, but it at least comforted him a little. 

Remus stayed just out of sight of Umbridge, it was always in his best interest to stay well away from her.

‘Well, this is simply unacceptable, I informed you several times that I would be coming to question your daughter about the incident and it seems you have failed to prepare her for questioning.’ It was the lightness of her voice that Remus felt under his skin, there was nothing rough about it, but it still felt like a stab in the chest when he heard it.

‘And I informed you several times that she would be in no condition to be woken up on your arrival.’ It didn't really matter who was standing in front of George, he would never back down when it came to patient care and this was so much more than that. ‘I told your office that I will inform them of any progress that might mean we can wake her up, but right now she will be in too much pain to-‘

‘Will that affect her ability to tell us the truth of what happened?’ 

‘What?!’

‘It doesn't matter to me whether she is in any discomfort, all I need is her side of events so we can put this case to bed.’ 

Oh, Umbridge, even you couldn't be that stupid. Remus moved slightly so he see could the fury that was now pouring from every cell of George.

‘Now you listen to me,’ he growled, Kingsley and Dawlish immediately stepped up, but it seemed to have no impact on George in the slightest. It was so clear that if George wanted to he could take on both men very quickly and they exchanged a small glance that said they knew it. ‘And listen very carefully, because this will be as polite as I can possibly muster. Regardless of anything, I have a duty of care to every patient that steps foot in this hospital, to ensure that they recover and leave here healthy and without any pain. Her spine has been shattered in several places, do you have any idea what that feels like? Do you have any idea of what inflicting the cruciatis curse has done to those injuries? Don't bother answering, the answer is no, you are not a healer, you are not a soldier, you do not know anything… you step foot in that room and you will have a serious problem on your hands.’

‘Are you threatening me?’ 

‘I'm reminding you, that your authority in this hospital only goes so far.’ George was struggling to keep it together, but Remus got the impression he was more than used to dealing with people like the foul woman in front of him. ‘You will not go near that room until I have given express permission for you to do so. Am I understood?’

‘I'm not sure you know who you are dealing with.’ Umbridge tried her hardest to pretend like she wasn't intimidated, but Remus wasn't fooled. 

‘I'm not sure you realise who you are dealing with.’ It was like fire pouring from his mouth. ‘Do not let me find you anywhere near that room.’ George didn't bother waiting for a reply, he turned and walked away before he said anything else that may have put him in a difficult position in the future.

Umbridge eventually left to head down another corridor and Remus had a bad feeling about it, but before he could follow after them, Benji appeared close to the door that led from the main lobby.

‘Remus?’ He said, his eyes a little bloodshot and worn. ‘What are you doing here?’

Remus sighed. ‘Mostly avoiding Umbridge, but I just came to visit Angelina. What about you?’

Benji suddenly looked as if someone had caught him doing something he knew he shouldn't have been doing. ‘Well, I might as well tell you. Jocelyne’s pregnant, she having a couple of tests today, just to make sure everything's alright, but yeah, we’re having a baby.’

It suddenly hit Remus hard, of course Jocelyne was pregnant, it was so much more likely to be her than Angelina, it was so obvious that Angelina had simply observed the symptoms in someone else; she would have been more worried if it was her. ‘Congratulations.’ Remus smiled and shook Benji’s hand. ‘Do you know what you're having yet?’

‘Not yet, maybe after today we will.’ Through his tiredness, Benji looked very proud and very nervous. ‘I just hope it's healthy and happy. It's such a weird feeling though.’ He half laughed.

‘I can imagine.’ Remus nodded. ‘You're going to be a wonderful father, it's always the ones that worry the most that end up being the better parents, means you care immensely. I take it, you've not told too many people?’

‘No, we were going to wait until we knew if it was a boy or girl, but with everything that happened…’ Benji swallowed hard. ‘We were going to ask him to be godfather and Angie to be godmother, mostly so they wouldn't fight over it, but also because they'd both make great parents. We still want Angie to be godmother… you think she'd go for it?’

Remus smiled. ‘I think she needs to be asked a little later down the line, but I have no doubt she will say yes and also no doubt that she will panic and not know how to do it, but she’ll learn.’

‘She always does.’ Benji smiled. The two men paused for a moment, just taking in the building tension. ‘Look, I'm sorry about what was said at the funeral, we were all emotional and Jocelyne has always said I've had temper issues… you know what Angie is like, you know what Jack was like… it was just hard to watch him pining and hurting Tonks like that and she never even saw that. She's in love with you and I'm happy for her, as her friend I would push her down the aisle if that's where you both end up.’ Remus gave a slight chuckle. ‘But Jack was my friend too and as far as I'm concerned, you're the reason he didn't get what he wanted. I like you, but a part of me hates you, blames you I suppose.’

‘I understand.’ Remus nodded, it was hard for him to hear, but not unexpected. He always knew Jack loved Angelina and often thought he was the better man, but she didn't choose Jack, she chose him. ‘I just hope in time you can forgive me, I've been selfish where Angelina is concerned, but as I'm sure you can imagine, Jack would have been the same.’

Benji half smiled. ‘Yeah… yeah, he would.’ They shared another moment of silence. ‘I'll tell Jocelyne you said hi and let me know if there's anything you need when Angie wakes up, I want to apologise to her for what I said.’

‘I'm sure it isn't necessary, but I'll let her know all the same.’ Remus nodded and stepped to one side to let Benji leave.

 

Jocelyne stayed to have the last test done and Benji hated to leave, but the ministry had sent an urgent owl and she understood, she always understood. Benji had considered himself truly lucky to have found Jocelyne at such a young age, she was always pretty, but somehow was becoming more beautiful the older she got. She loved the stars’ she loved seeing the planets and how they arranged themselves, she wasn't one for believing in prophecies, but that opinion changed slightly when Angie had told them about the brother that lived inside her.

Jocelyne and Benji had stayed up well into the morning hours talking about how Angie was always special, she was always so… contained. She never noticed anyone poking fun at her or the bullying from the older Slytherins, but she never seemed to notice people whispering about her achievements either, she just got on with things and a part of Benji admired her for it. 

When the tournament came along he was sure she'd win, but because of how contained she was, he couldn't have anticipated the maze having such an effect on her. She was different from that point on, older somehow, not more mature exactly, just older and worn down, like she had seen war.

Benji only knew this because he'd seen his reflection after the first battle he'd ever been in, war ages you, it stretches you and pulls you in directions you don't ever want to go. You make choices that you can't bear to tell people about. He knew he was being foolish when he prayed that by not talking about it, it might never have happened. They happened and they happened to him.

He finally got back to the office and found the reason why he had been called back. 

‘Angie’s wand.’ Kingsley handed him a file. ‘It's why he came to England, Umbridge wants to take it away from her, claiming it as a weapon and a potential future threat.’

Benji half laughed. ‘Yeah, that won't happen.’ He said, scanning through the documents Umbridge had filed. ‘Angie won't let anyone take her wand away from her, least of all Umbridge.’

Kingsley smiled a knowing smile. ‘I know, Alistair has overruled Umbridge on this occasion but Dumbledore, surprisingly, has said she might have a point.’

‘Dumbledore said that?!’ 

‘You know the story of the three brothers? Beedle the bard?’ Kingsley gestured that they take the conversation into his office.

‘The children's story?’ Benji took a seat and frowned at Kingsley.

‘Nakamura didn't think it was a children's story, he killed for it. Dumbledore believes that if Nakamura believed it, who's to say others won't?’

‘He can't be supporting the claims to take her wand away though?’

‘No, of course not!’ Kingsley shook his head and sipped his – probably now cold – tea. ‘But he does think that she should try and stay out of the limelight for a while, just until things here have calmed down.’

Benji sighed. ‘And I suppose you want me to pass the message along?’

Kingsley smiled an innately kind smile. ‘Benji, you are close to a witch more powerful than most of us seen up close in years, we are trying to respect her mother's wishes by giving her space to grow as a human being, whilst also keeping an eye out for potential threatening situations. You're part of that operation now.’

Benji took a small breath, he knew what Kingsley was asking him to do, he knew he would fail and he knew it wouldn't matter. ‘Angie Lockwood is not someone anyone can control, it might not be a bad thing. All she cares about is learning and her family, we keep her right where that's concerned, I don't think we’ll need to consider her a threat.’

Kingsley shifted slightly and before Benji knew it, he was suddenly thrust into a conversation about how Kingsley and Mad Eye knew about the Lockwood family history. Anna had decided that it was best to have the two most trusted Aurors on her side just in case something happened. It was a revelation to Benji that anyone outside the Lockwood inner circle would know, but he promised he would stick by Angie no matter what. She was his biggest pain in the arse, but she was family.

 

Kingsley was on patrol that night with Dawlish and Anna who was deeply concerned for her daughter.

‘She'll be alright, Anna.’ Kingsley assured her.

‘She is a tough girl.’ Dawlish said, rather reluctantly. Kingsley knew he hadn't been keen on Angie from the start, thought she was too powerful for someone her age and had begun to grow suspicious of it. 

‘I know, it's just a mother's worry, I suppose.’ Anna smiled her usual worried behind the eyes smile and they continued to patrol throughout the night around the ministry. 

It had been a regular thing, since the downfall of Voldemort, that they did regular patrols around the ministry building. It was mostly for the benefit of people working late into the night that an Auror was handy to make sure they could work in peace, but also so that the rest of the Aurors could be summoned quickly if an attack did break out. Kingsley was looking forward to it being over, there would still be a patrol, but it would be in much smaller numbers. 

The night was, yet again, uneventful. The same people worked, the same people left when the sun was coming up and all was well. Kingsley, Dawlish and Anna all went to the office to see the first Aurors arriving, including Tonks and Moody who looked like they'd had a much more stressful evening. They grumbled and gave each other sideways looks before Kingsley finally asked what happened, something he later regretted heavily.

 

Anna wasn't sticking around to find out what happened. She knew that they had been sent to deal with a group of wizards in the north who had been selling cursed items and the fact that they had both come back soaking wet… Anna really didn't want to know.

She had begun shaking again and needed to go home to sleep off the long night. Anna often began shaking when she was tired and unable to control it. It was a symptom of war, she had seen far too much and it was abundantly clear that both her children were leading a similar life. Darren had been doing his part in Japan when Nakamura was first coming to power and Angie had fought in the Triwizard tournament, Bulgaria and now the ministry building itself. 

Anna worried so much for her children, Darren was in the limelight so it was difficult for him to have any kind of normal life and Angie just seemed so oblivious to everything around her. There was solace in the two people they had fallen for, Clara being as feisty and kind as she was, kept Darren head strong and Remus with all his patience and intelligence, kept Angie on the right path.

Both she and George were so grateful for their children, they were healthy and for the most part happy, but the growing concern over what was inside them, often diminished that gratitude quickly. George had come to terms with the fact that the prophecy was coming to light quicker than ever. It had always been said that Remus would get his revenge and kill Romulus in the most brutal way, payback for what he had done all those centuries ago. 

Anna couldn't bear the thought of one of her children killing the other, neither of them asked for this life and neither would live with it quietly. They were both intelligent beyond a doubt and if there was a way to ensure that they both survived, they would find it. Angie would be leading the charge and Darren would look at her in admiration for it. He'd always been the mature one, Angie just wanted to have fun most of the time and grow up to be like Darren. 

She finally got home and George was yelling at Darren to get up, apparently the alarms hadn't been set the night before.

‘Adrianna.’ He sighed and took her bag and jacket to put on the stand. ‘How was it?’ He asked as she sat down at the long, oak table. It was new, Anna had seen it on a trip in Diagon Alley and the next thing she knew, George had bought it for her. He was like that sometimes, if they had been going through hard times, he liked to do little indulgent things for her, it kept them both sane.

‘The usual, nothing of note.’ She said, yawning slightly and feeling her shaking hand against her lips.

‘Here, let me get you some tea.’ George didn't wait for a response, he strode over to the kitchen stove and began boiling the water. He checked his watch before taking two more long strides to the bottom of the stairs. ‘DARREN! GET UP, YOU’LL BE LATE!’ he roared and suddenly the sound of Darren scrambling around could be heard. Anna chuckled softly to herself. She loved moments like that, it was simple and so like a family should be. 

‘How's Angie?’ She asked and George gave his sympathetic smile.

‘She's healing well, though I imagine trying to get her to wake up will be difficult given what happened.’ He poured the boiling water into a cup and added a few things that she knew was to stop the shaking. ‘I've asked Remus to be there when we do wake her, just so she feels a little more comfortable.’

‘That's good.’ Anna nodded, she knew full well that George was keeping something to himself, he would concentrate heavily on the task in front of him when he held back, she had learned to recognise this early on in their relationship and always waited for him to come forward and say something. 

‘She’ll be okay in the end.’ He said and set down the tea in front of his wife, he went to walk away to involve himself in another task before turning back and smiling as if he'd forgotten something. ‘I love you.’ He said and kissed his wife for a few seconds longer than Anna had anticipated. 

 

George had ensured Anna went to bed in a happier state than when she had arrived and Darren had flung himself out of the house only a few minutes after appearing for breakfast. He looked at the alarm clock and made a mental note that it would need to be taken in for fixing, he knew that Alfred was handy with clocks, but had no idea when he would next see him. Instead he packed it away in his work bag, set the house to clean up the morning dishes and scurried off to work. 

His mind was often torn between family ailments and the ones he was dealing with, but in this case, they were one and the same. Angie was healing at a fast rate, she always had done and George believed it was something to do with the brother she hosted. He still couldn't have been sure of which one it was, but after conversations with both his children, it was clear the brothers were becoming more and more curious about the bodies they lived in. 

Lily had greeted him as he arrived and handed him a small parchment with room numbers on it, patients that needed to be monitored throughout the day. She had taken the night shift and was leaving to get some rest. They had built up a good routine, using shortened sentences that they both understood to quickly update each other on the shift they'd had. Mostly it was just letting each other know if families needed to be contacted or if anyone was beginning to look critical as well as telling each other if anyone had passed away. The rest was written down on parchments and handed over in the few minutes they spent together in the morning.

George was around fifteen years older than Lily and remembered her first day at St Mungo's, she panicked at first, not quite knowing how to deal with things before George had taken her to one side and calmed her down. He had told her the one thing that he was told on his first day. 

‘There isn't a rule book or a set of guidelines here, you see someone you can help and you help them, you don't know the spell, use a freezing charm until you can find someone that does. This place is fast paced and there isn't much time for being polite to each other, if someone is short with you, don't take it as a personal attack, we all get pulled away from our tasks for things we'd rather not be pulled away for, but it never happens twice, we learn and we develop our skills together, we're inventive and creative and share ideas that may or may not work, but we won't know until we try… and remember this, not everyone can be saved and not everyone wants to be saved. The patient is priority, above all else.’

He only knew it worked because she never panicked like that again, he'd occasionally see her get flustered with the onslaught and often he tried to release some of that stress by taking a patient from her and letting her deal with what he knew she excelled at. As long as Lily had confidence, George would never worry about her. She was highly skilled as a healer, she just needed to be given a few chances to prove it to everyone else.

George had made his way around the rooms, introducing himself as the new Healer on shift to the patients who could understand him, some were unconscious and just needed to be checked on every couple of hours or so. He slipped on his glasses and made his usual trip to Angie’s room. 

He spoke to her as he did his checks the way he normally would, he had no idea if she was even aware of his speaking, but it gave him comfort if nothing else.

‘Well, it all looks very promising Angie, we might try waking you up soon, just to see what's going on in there.’ He smiled down at his daughters lifeless body and his mind was cast back to Bulgaria. Remus had carried her all the way from the middle of the hills to the sanctuary, he was exhausted and he couldn't carry her any further. But George was there to take over and carried her broken body back to her cabin. 

George had worried about her spine for a long time after that, knowing that if she broke it again, recovering from it would be much worse, the old pain would still be there and she would have trouble with her back for the rest of her life. He was doing everything he could to ensure she led a perfectly normal life after her back had healed, but it was looking dim at best. If he could just wake her up and find out if there was any pain, it would allow him to do a better job, but the signs were that the cruciatis curse was still attacking a singular place in her spine and he couldn’t risk her feeling that when she was conscious.

George repeated his routine of reading through books that explained how curses worked and how to remove certain jinxes and hexes that inflicted pain, but again he came up short, they didn't work in the same way and he would need to find a new book to further research what was happening to Angie.

 

‘George?’ Remus had watched the tired healer sit down and chew on his apple as he read through a particular large and heavy book.

‘Remus, I didn't expect you today.’ He stood up and greeted Remus, tucking the book under his arm.

‘Schools back tomorrow, so I thought I'd make one last visit before I need to be at the school for a while. Everyone send their love as well.’ Remus smiled lightly, but he could feel his body wearing down as the moon approached.

‘Of course, go right ahead.’ George nodded and Remus could see a little worry in the corners of his eyes. ‘She's still sleeping, but she's doing well.’ He assured Remus. 

He decided to leave George in peace, Angelina was more important to him in that moment. He knew his way around St Mungo's fairly well and almost hated that he did, but he found the room with ease and sat down in his usual seat, held her soft hand in his and told her about his day and how he missed her.


	14. A New Beginning?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! Okay so I was having a bit of trouble with this chapter, but after rewriting the last one a couple of times, I finally managed to make it work.
> 
> Life is getting hectic just now, so updates will be pretty slow, but I know that the people who love the story most won't mind ;)
> 
> Hope you all enjoy it, it could be the last for a while. Have patience, I will get to the rest of the story.
> 
> As always, you can email me at jadders92@hotmail.com I've had some really lovely emails from people enjoying the series and also a little fan art of Angelina, I will be asking the artist's permission, but hopefully I'll be able to post up a few examples on my Tumblr which is also jadders92
> 
> This bring us to the next order of business, some of you have asked if I have things like Facebook and Twitter etc and the answer is yes, I do, but in the interest of my career, I am choosing to keep my identity anonymous. I can only ask that you try and understand my desires to remain unknown. It's incredibly flattering and I can constantly feel my ego inflating slightly with all the responses I get and for that, I have a deep appreciation for you all.
> 
> Enjoy the chapter and we will speak again in time.
> 
> Love Jadders92 xx

I could feel myself being lifted up, through all the fog and dull, greasy mist and finally opening my eyes to see a bright white ceiling. Was I still unconscious? Was I still inside the white room with the brother?

‘There we are Angie, looking bright already.’ Dad? ‘Can you hear me alright? Remus is here.’ I turned my stiff neck slightly to see the smiling face of Remus sitting next to me, I could see from the way he was sitting that his hand was placed over mine.

I took a deep breath and felt all those places in my body that ached and stung, but for the most part there wasn't any severe pain, my back felt much better than it had done and I hoped that it was over, like a bad dream. Unfortunately, I knew only too well that it wasn't all a bad dream. Jack was still gone and that hole was still there.

I managed to wake up properly and my father seemed happy with how I was progressing. I suddenly remembered something that I wish I hadn't. A shrill woman had been speaking to me…

‘Angelina, are you alright?’ Remus asked, frowning and the memory began floating away. 

‘Fine.’ I mumbled and stretched my neck a little. He handed me some water and I didn't realise how much I needed it at that point. My throat was dry and scratchy and the water only soothed it so much. ‘He's gone, isn't he? It wasn't a dream?’

Remus had a sadness to him that I immediately hated. ‘No, it wasn't a dream.’ He sighed. Jack’s death had pained him more than I anticipated. ‘We can go to the grave if you like? Dumbledore had been kind enough to take over my classes for the next couple of days, he was quite enthusiastic about it if you ask me, but it does mean I'm free to spend time with you while you get better.’ I tried to smile a little, but my mouth was stiff and I only managed a grimace. Remus didn't mind though and a small wave of happiness took me over. 

‘He was after my wand?’ I asked.

‘Yes, though I'm not sure why.’ Remus frowned. ‘I think if you ask your mother, she might be able to shed a little light on the events leading to the attack, but I'm afraid I'm not a ministry official or a family member so I don't have the right to know. It's been kept well out of the papers as well, the ministry has done a very good job of keeping it contained and I think it's for the best, given that Voldemort is still such a fresh memory for some.’

I understood, I really did, but it didn't stop me being frustrated with it. I wondered how people would explain Jack's death without mentioning he was a hero.

‘Angelina,’ Remus knew what was going through my mind. ‘Trust me, this is for the greater good, Jack would understand that.’

‘I know.’ I nodded a minuscule nod.

Remus took a breath and tried a new tactic. ‘Do you want to go outside? Your father said you should be able to walk around?’

‘Sure.’ I shrugged, again only very slightly. 

 

For the next month I was still in recovery, Remus couldn't be there as much as he would have liked due to the fact he had already taken more time than he wanted to off work. But I didn't mind too much, I mostly sat in my lab and talked to Darren about what was going on in my head. It wasn't an easy conversation, but Darren was always good at suggesting words and phrases that might have fit. 

I cried sometimes and Darren always knew exactly what to do. He put his strong arm around me and let me get it out, when I was calmer, he would hand me a chocolate frog and we'd laugh a little. 

‘How about we go to Diagon Alley today?’ Darren had suggested one morning when I was observing my new tank. It sat empty for the time being, but I had planned to breed a new type of puffapod, a sort of hybrid of the orange ones and the blue ones. Either that or I would fill it with something entirely different.

‘Something you need?’ I asked, grabbing my long black coat and following my brother out of the house. 

‘No, just thought you might like the trip.’ He shrugged and I smiled, knowing that Christmas was only a couple of months away and he liked to start early to avoid missing anyone out. Though we both knew someone would be forgotten once again.

We apparated to the busy high street and ventured into various shops, it became very apparent that Darren just wanted me to get out of the house and into a place where there were people. It was like the reasoning was on the tip of my tongue, something about life going on, I think.

‘So, I saw a sign not long ago,’ he said as we left Broomstix, he'd bought a new grooming kit, as his old one had run out of most things he needed and the brush was getting old and tatty. ‘It was for an empty lot, right here on the high street.’ He vaguely pointed towards an old looking shop that was entirely empty and probably full of creatures dwelling in the darkened corners. ‘It's pretty cheap to buy the whole thing. Twenty thousand galleons, can you believe it? Most of these plots cost around the two hundred thousand mark, just because they're in such a hot spot, and the owners are still paying for them. But anyway, I was talking with Alice and Alfred and they said you had briefly mentioned selling your puffapods-‘

‘Wait, are you suggesting I buy a shop?’ We had stopped outside the shop and I couldn't quite believe what Darren was suggesting.

‘Hear me out.’ He said and opened the door with a key in his pocket. ‘I spoke with the current owners – turns out they’re fans – and they said if we wanted to invest, they'd throw in the apartment above for an extra ten thousand galleons.’ Darren summoned a ball of light and sent it upwards. There seemed to be a lot more room than I first realised, the shop looked to have three floors to it and space further back for storage. ‘It's got a brilliant little garden out back, you could grow product there and it's all very contained, easy to put up a few protective charms if need be and the basement is about the size of one floor, tons of room. The apartment is just up those stairs and it's three bedrooms, kitchen, living room, the works. What I thought, is that Alice and Alfred could take the apartment and we could stay with mum and dad seeing as they love us so much,’ I had to laugh at that bit. ‘And it would also give us and extra patch of garden to grow any product… so, what do you think?’

What did I think? I ran my fingers through the layer of dust that covered the wooden counter and thought. ‘I think you've put a lot of thought into this.’ I said and smiled. ‘Why do you want me to buy a shop? And where do you think I'm keeping the thirty thousand galleons to actually pay for it? I can maybe come up with ten, but that's all royalties from my book.’

‘Well, Alice and Alfred have gone into business together selling watches that can detect things and Alice has started growing some of the ingredients for the wolfsbane for friends and some other werewolves she has come across; they've got about eight to invest and in case you forgot I am a huge Quidditch star.’ He winked and it made me laugh. ‘I want to invest in the rest. Alice and Alfred were a little reluctant seeing as it wouldn't be a fair split, but I told them we can do it three ways, we each put down fifteen, that would cover the plot and renovation and the first profits of twelve thousand goes back to me so that it's all even.’

He really had thought this through and seemed to have had full conversations about it with Alice and Alfred. 

‘Okay, that all sounds well planned. One last question.’ I challenged.

‘Anything.’

‘What are we supposed to fill three floors of a shop with? What product are we selling?’

Darren smiled and almost laughed. ‘Werewolf supplies. You can do so much more good with your own place, you can provide at a cheaper rate the supplies werewolves need to survive. That and the odd watch, book and possibly any interesting things you might find on your adventures. Of course, we wouldn't promote it as selling werewolf supplies, but instead it would just be a sort of knickknack store. Clara said she knows some people who could spread the word about the werewolf packages as it were… I think we should do this Angie, we can really make a difference with a shop.’

I took a moment to imagine what the dusty old building would look like filled with people all trying to buy things, students coming in to purchase my book and werewolves finally getting a decent chance at life. 

‘Can I think about it?’ I asked.

‘Of course, I've got until next week to let the owners know, before they put it on the market again.’ He said and we continued to explore the old shop, sure enough we found there were creatures living in the darkened corners, but Darren said we could get people in to clear them out. All in all it looked like a place that could be cosy and bright with life.

 

‘Well, it all sounds like an exciting adventure to me.’ Remus said, sipping his whiskey. I had gone to visit him over the weekend, feeling the need to stretch my legs a bit and for a change of scenery. We sat in his cosy office and I had interrupted him talking with what looked to be a seventh year Ravenclaw student, I recognised her as one of his not so secret admirers and felt a little odd to be finding them both alone in his classroom. ‘Are you going to do it?’

‘Darren wants to.’ I sighed, feeling the heavy distraction of the Ravenclaw on my mind. ‘Says we can do some real good with a shop, selling werewolf supplies at a cheaper rate and things like my book and whatever Alice and Alfred have been selling. I think he's right.’

‘I take it you'll be growing most of the supplies?’

I nodded and carefully took a sip of my tea. I didn't really want whiskey that evening, I just wasn't in the mood for it.

‘Well, you might want to find someone to help you, with Alice and Alfred mostly running the shop floor, making their watches and taking deliveries of stock, they might not have time to grow much in the garden as you suggested.’

‘No, I already spoke to Darren about that, I think we’re just going to grow anything extra in the garden at the shop, just in case we run out of anything there and we’ll produce most of it at the house and send it over when it's ready to be sold.’ I said and realised I hadn't made a lot of eye contact with Remus at that point, mostly just staring at the bottom of my teacup. I looked up at him a gave a brief smile.

He swallowed and took a small breath. ‘I feel as though something else is bothering you, do you want to tell me?’

‘Not really.’ I sighed. ‘But then I don't really want to tell anyone anything… ever.’ Remus gave a small chuckle. ‘It feels… small. Like it's not really worth the time I'm spending on it.’ Why was this so difficult? Because it was stupid, that's why. ‘We… I was eighteen, in seventh year when we… you know and that's fine, I don't care, but… you know I worry that someone else might…’ that was about as much as I could say, Remus understood though and almost laughed.

‘I can't keep having this conversation with you.’ He sighed and finished his whiskey. ‘That picture you gave me for my birthday, sits on my desk, just over there.’ Remus pointed to the silver frame where we both stood at Benji and Jocelyne’s wedding. Jack had looked very sharp that day. ‘I look at it when I'm stressed or tired or annoyed or even when I'm none of those things, I look at it because it reminds me of truly lucky I am. Why would I even want to find anyone else?’

‘I don't know.’ I half laughed shaking my head. ‘I told you it was a small thing… petty. I think I just worry that, we’re not married or anything so there's nothing really stopping us from finding other people.’

‘You know that some people find others when they're married as well?’

‘I know, but it's… a statement?’

I was getting my words all tangled up again and Remus didn't mind. 

‘I understand what you're saying, but truly, the only thing keeping us together, is us. If we want to be with each other then that's it, we’ll be together for as long as we want.’ Remus assured me, but there was a sudden frown between his eyes as he leaned forward. It was like he realised something. ‘Angelina, are you… asking to get married?’

‘No,’ I suddenly said and almost leapt up. ‘I mean, I'm not ruling it out, I'm just… I'm still working stuff out.’

Remus nodded and if I didn't know better, there was a touch of sadness to his expression, but I wasn't so good at that kind of thing. 

‘Well, as long as you're making progress with that.’ He said and took my empty tea cup to put with his glass on the table behind him. ‘Come on, lets go to bed.’ Remus took my hand and I followed him to his bedroom, it was always so cosy in there and warm and soft and it felt like home.

 

Darren was incredibly excited about buying the shop and after speaking with Alice and Alfred, it seemed they were just as excited for the new challenge ahead of us. They had had some success in selling their products and had built up a small customer base, mostly werewolves and Aurors who needed some type of device that Alfred had made. It was a good start.

Darren had mentioned the fact he was going into business and had made a deal with a small up and coming broom accessory company, he was branding his name onto a few of their products and making them available in the shop.

Benji was a little concerned about the attention it was getting, but he didn’t argue against it. 

We’d met up for Christmas drinks at the Three Broomsticks with David, Cassie and Jocelyne; for the first half an hour it was uncomfortable. There was something, or rather someone missing and we could all feel it. It was the first time we were all together since the funeral and it was painful. 

Soon we moved onto the reason David and Cassie had come to Hogwarts, which was to teach the students about various creatures they’d encountered in Bulgaria and France. I was there to see Remus as always, Jocelyne was there to talk to Firenze and Benji was investigating a wizard who had been seen close to Hogsmeade. We all had reasons to be there and it seemed we came at the right time, it was the few days that the teachers would usually venture out into the village to get a drink and pick up gifts for various friends and relatives.

‘Well, I must say, this is a surprise.’ It was a stern and crisp Scottish accent that floated through our midst. We all turned to see Mcgonagall watching over us the same way she would when we were in school. ‘I wasn’t aware the whole clan was coming to Hogwarts Mr Wales.’

‘Well, why not have a family outing at Christmas.’ David was definitely getting close to drunk, he’d already put away far more than us and didn’t look to be slowing down.

‘Indeed.’

‘Take a seat Professor, let’s get you caught up on everything.’ He said with all his charm and it seemed to do the trick. A faint pinkness glossed over McGonagall’s cheeks and she sat down as Benji got another round in. He’d stopped drinking after one, mostly so that Jocelyne didn’t feel left out, while Cassie and I kept it steady.

It was Jocelyne that had begun updating McGonagall on everything that had been happening since the last time we saw her and she was about to get to the pregnant part when a few of the other teachers showed up. It was obvious that Jocelyne was carrying a baby anyway, but it didn’t stop Hagrid tearing up when she said it. 

It was quite by chance that I’d bumped into Remus at the bar, he was only dropping by to pick up a bottle of Firewhiskey after we’d finished his last bottle.

‘You come here often?’ He asked, with a cheeky smile.

‘So cheesy.’ I rolled my eyes, giggling slightly.

‘Let me try again,’ Remus cleared his throat and thought of something. ‘Did it hurt?... When you fell from heaven?’

I frowned slightly. ‘That’s a muggle one isn’t it?’

‘It is, according to my mother, its one of the most cringe worthy things anyone could ever say.’ Remus laughed and nodded to Rosemerta, she wandered off to collect his bottle and to get another round for everyone at our table.

‘You going to join us?’ I asked, finishing the last of my butterbeer and placing it on the bar mat.

‘Maybe just for one, I need to get back and see how my father is doing. He’s been a little under the weather.’ 

‘Is he okay?’ I wasn’t even aware his father was ill.

‘It’s nothing major, just a cold, but at his age, I worry.’ Remus gave a small smile, but there was a heaviness to it that I was beginning to recognise as him covering up how concerned he was about things. 

‘Well, send my love and let me know if he needs anything, won’t you?’ My head was starting to spin with all this standing and worrying. 

‘Of course, he’ll be pleased to hear from you.’ 

Remus had joined us for a drink as he said he would, but left when things got a bit loud and obnoxious. I would be going back with everyone else on one of the carriages and I couldn’t wait to curl up next to Remus’s warm body. 

It was only the cold wind hitting my head that send my head into a tailspin, I began staggering towards the carriage along with David and Cassie, Benji said his goodnight to Jocelyne and kissed her protruding belly with just as much love. An image of Remus kissing my belly floated through my mind and it made me smile.

 

Remus sighed as his father began coughing through the fire again, he wasn’t in the best condition, but looked like he was recovering okay. He heard the door to his classroom open and then close soon after. Angelina was back and was probably making her way towards the bedroom, but Remus never heard the door opening to his quarters. He eventually came out of his office, his wand lighting the way and saw a small crumpled heap at the foot of his classroom door.

Remus chuckled, lifting Angelina’s small frame into his arms and taking her through to the bedroom to sleep. She had woken up a little as he put her down.

‘Remus.’ She mumbled, and smiled. ‘Will you kiss me when I’m pregnant?’ She asked and it made Remus freeze. He wasn’t exactly sure of what she had said, or rather if he had heard her correctly. She wasn’t pregnant, they had gone through that already. So why was she asking such a thing? Angelina was snoring gently and Remus stayed awake for much longer than he would have liked. 

He couldn’t stop going over it in his head, the same conversation, about why he couldn’t have children, about why he would have had a hundred children with her if he could, about how inferior he felt because he couldn't give her a child. It was long, it was painful and it was keeping him awake until the early morning hours. He couldn’t stand it, he wanted to be sick, he wanted to run away and hide and never let himself near Angelina again for fear that she might leave him and his heart would simply break.

Remus was exhausted and he was all too aware that he was overthinking things, but he knew as well that what he was thinking wasn’t entirely delusional. Angelina was heading back home at lunch time, Remus wouldn’t have much time to ask her about what she said and with her head pounding from the night before, he might not have gotten much from her.

He paced around a little while she was in the shower, he thought about joining her, but decided against it, instead he sat down, tapping his foot slightly and trying to read the Daily Prophet with his tea. 

The shower stopped and Remus could feel his heart beating a little faster in anticipation; he was just going to ask the question, everything he wanted to know, was she pregnant? Did she want children? Was it a deal breaker if the answer was yes? Was marriage something she wanted sooner or later? He wanted it, maybe not now, but at some point, he would have loved to be her husband. Was she unhappy with how things were between them? Why was it taking so long for her to get out of the shower?

Remus took a deep breath and calmed himself. He was panicking over nothing, the same way she had done with the Ravenclaw student. As far as Remus was concerned, Angelina was completely unique, everything that had happened between them was completely natural. He loved her since the Yule Ball and even more so when she had come out of the maze. 

In fact, the more Remus thought about it, the more he realised that the times when he was most attracted to Angelina, were the times just after she had seen some form of battle. Was he only attracted to her because she was a survivor? Did he only want her for the skills she possessed in battle? Or was it something else? Was in the wolf in him that controlled who he did and did not find attractive? Was it that part of him that chose Angelina as the perfect woman? Remus knew that Angelina had a long line of heritage that went back to the beginning of his kind, knew that her family is responsible for his pain and his suffering, was he attracted to her because of that? Did he enjoy the pain to an extent? He couldn’t have done, that was entirely ridiculous, no one enjoyed getting hurt, people enjoyed being happy and feeling loved. Was there something wrong with Remus? Was there something broken inside of him?

‘That’s a pretty heavy frown.’ That voice that made him sane again, the one that pushed his darkness so far down, Remus could almost believe he was a good man.

This was it, did he tell her the truth, did he ask his questions and find out where they stood, or did he allow his cowardice to shine through once again.

‘I was thinking about something.’ He said and put the paper down. When he looked up, Angelina had thrown her towel on the edge of the bed. Her beautiful, slightly tanned skin, all the scars and cracks and bruises looked as if they could fall off at any moment. It had disarmed Remus in a way he wasn’t quite prepared for. 

She was so comfortable around him, comfortable enough to walk around naked and not even think about if he was judging her or not, comfortable enough to share his bed, comfortable enough to share her thoughts, comfortable enough to even allow him to do the same. She was happy with him and it flushed Remus’s heart with warmth again.

‘What were you thinking about?’ She asked, turning around and taking the towel to her hair to dry it. She was more than any man ever deserved and Remus felt he owed it to every man that never managed to capture her attention, to see that he appreciated what he had every day that he could. 

Remus stood up and wandered over to Angelina. ‘I was worrying mostly, about something you said before you went to sleep last night, I panicked and let that panic keep me awake all night… and then I sat over there while you were in the shower and let myself get worked up over that panic. In short, I have things I want to get off my chest, if you’d allow me?’ Remus swallowed, he could see her brain working in overdrive. Trying to remember what she had said in her drunken state, wondering what it was he could have been panicking over and visualising Remus sitting with his paper and worrying about something she wasn’t even aware of. 

‘Okay,’ she took a small breath. ‘What’s on your mind?’ Angelina picked up her clothes and threw them on quickly as Remus poured her some tea, thinking on where he should begin so she best understood what he was saying.

It felt longer than an hour they sat there talking, it felt like an age, every word leaving Remus’s mouth felt like an insult to Angelina’s existence. He felt his unworthiness and his insecurity, he felt his desire and love for her and when it was most inopportune, he grew frustrated with his vague explanation. Angelina struggled to understand some of his feelings, but Merlin she was trying. Remus would pause for a few moments when that frown began seeping in, just to give her a little time to find something to compare his statement to. She succeeded and Remus would move onto the next statement.

Remus stopped and Angelina hadn’t said anything. He couldn’t quite see what her thoughts were and it really was at times like this, he wished he was skilled in Legilimency. 

‘I saw Benji kiss Jocelyne like that.’ She said and cleared her throat slightly. ‘That’s probably why I said that… I don’t know if I want children. I just want to be happy right now and I want to be happy with you… I’d love to be your wife.’ Such a beautiful smile, it gave Remus that same flicker of hope he would have sometimes when she made her feelings and her desires known to him. ‘One day… I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you, you’re not broken… I remember my dad fighting off the Death Eaters that came to our house the ones that were looking for mum, when she came home… I have a really vivid memory of mum crying and telling my dad that she loved him, she kept saying it and I didn’t really know why. I think it has something to do with loss.’

Remus sighed. ‘You are learning so much more every day. It is something to do with loss, or the lack of. When someone finds themselves in mortal danger, the people around them panic and worry that that person might leave them, and once the danger has passed and that person survives, those people make their true feelings known. Its about not wanting anyone to die without knowing how people really felt… and I didn’t even realise that I was feeling that. You did.’ Remus took a breath and realised just how intelligent Angelina had become with her social skills. She was comparing the right memories, she was making links that Remus couldn’t make and she was making him feel better about himself, all within the same sentence.

‘Do you feel better for telling me?’ She asked and Remus looked deep into her bright blue eyes.

‘I feel better, mostly just for being around you.’ He admitted, it made her smile again and she stood up sit on his lap and hold him close. 

‘I feel better when I’m around you.’ She whispered close to his ear. ‘I’m glad we can talk like this, it makes me feel special.’

Remus wrapped his arms a little tighter around her body, she just felt right against him, he felt secure and safe with her. 

‘I suppose I should make a confession,’ Remus’s warm feeling started to dissipate. ‘I used your shower gel, I forgot to bring mine.’

Remus laughed, he laughed so hard, he thought he would break. He had smelt his own shower gel on her and never gave it a second thought, but there she was confessing it and hoping it would be alright. Angelina had never wanted to intrude on Remus’s life, she had an awareness of his age and that he had had a life before her, not much of one, but a life all the same and even if she didn’t know about her awareness, he loved her for it.


	15. Birth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright guys! So, this has been loooooooong overdue, I hope I can feed in a few more updates as this part of the Lockwood series comes to a close and we move onto the fourth part. I hope you've all been well and apologies for not updating sooner.
> 
> Love Jadders92 xx

It was panic stations, everyone was rushing around, Benji was barking for David and I to grab Jocelyne’s bag. We did and David looked at me excited. I wasn’t exactly sure of what was happening, but the second Jocelyne started wailing in pain, I caught on.

My father was on shift and I rushed through the corridors to find him.

‘Dad!’ I called, he was talking and laughing a little with another Healer. ‘Dad! The baby’s coming!’ Suddenly he was sprinting after me and was getting Jocelyne settled into one of the empty rooms. The Healer who my father had been speaking with appeared and began shouting for David and I to leave while they prepared for the birth of Benji and Jocelyne’s first baby.

It had been a couple of hours and my father appeared, sweat pouring from his brow and his breathing much heavier than before. David had been sleeping off the butterbeers we’d had while at Benji and Jocelyne’s. 

I jumped up and David smacked his head off of the bench we’d been waiting on. 

‘What’s happening?’ He mumbled.

My father’s hand came up to keep us both calm. ‘She’s doing well, Ali is in just now taking her through what is about to happen. She’s having contractions and we’re looking to deliver in a few hours when she’s ready. Unfortunately, this isn’t my area of expertise, I’m going to find Lily so that she can take care of Jocelyne properly. Once Ali says its fine, you can go in and see her.’

I smiled and released the breath I wasn’t aware I was holding onto. 

‘She’ll be fine Angie.’ My father said again and pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat away as he wandered off to find Lily.

I turned to David and we both took a moment, before laughing and hugging each other.

‘So, this is it.’ David said, taking a long breath in. ‘Finally having the baby a week before Christmas.’

‘I know.’ I smiled. ‘Jocelyne always loved the winter. No one knows why-‘ 

‘Can’t see the stars.’ We said at the same time and started laughing again. 

It was maybe another twenty minutes before Ali, the healer, came out and told us we could have an hour with our friends.

‘They’re both exhausted as it is, no need to get them worked up.’ The kind woman said and disappeared down the corridor.

We rushed into the room to find Benji stroking Jocelyne’s forehead and whispering quietly to her. She looked sick, sweat was dripping from her skin and her breathing was as shallow as I’d ever seen it, like the air just wouldn’t stick to her lungs. 

‘Hey.’ Benji said quietly as David and I approached the bed. 

‘Hey.’ I said back and stood a little awkwardly next to Benji. ‘How are you feeling?’

‘Tired.’ Jocelyne chuckled, and gasped a little for more air.

‘I expect so.’ I chuckled. ‘What did they say?’

‘Well, actually,’ Benji and Jocelyne seemed to have a silent conversation between themselves before they both broke out in smiles. ‘We’re having twins.’ He said and never took his eye off of his wife. He kissed her head and David and I just looked at each other with our mouths hanging open. Twins.

We stayed for an hour and left the hospital like Benji had asked. He and Jocelyne would have a long night ahead of them.

David had suggested we go for a drink before heading home and I couldn’t resist saying yes, it was the mood for celebration. Though one drink turned into several and before we got too drunk, we headed home.

 

Remus,

Twins! Can you believe it? Twins! Harper and Jackson Meyers, they had one of each and named their son after Jack. They asked me to be godmother and I said yes without thinking. The reality hasn’t hit me yet, but I’m too excited. What exactly does a godparent do? 

You’ll have to come and see them soon, the babies are so cute! 

The shop now has an opening date. January 14th is the grand opening. I’ve finished growing most of the supplies and Darren is taking his first delivery at the beginning of the new year. Alfred and Alice have got all of their stuff sorted and it looks like we’ll be ready to open on time. 

Alice has a friend from one of the greenhouses in Cornwall, recently retired and she has agreed to work in the shop part time until we can find someone a bit more permanent. Alice and Alfred seem really happy with the arrangement for them to work in the shop while Darren and I are away. We will of course help where we can and do our bit with the day to day stuff, but Darren thinks it’s important for the werewolf community to see that these things are possible. What do you think?

I should mention that I’ve been thinking a little on our last conversation at the castle, about the future. I don’t have any more conclusions, but I just thought I’d let you know I’ve been thinking about us a lot. 

Yours

Angelina

 

Remus read the letter with a wide smile. Angelina was happy. She had witnessed new life. For all her life had given her, all the pain and the hurt and death that followed her, she had finally witnessed life and Remus hoped that this would help her on the right path. 

Christmas Day was fast approaching and Remus had been doing some thinking on his future with Angelina.

‘If you love the woman, you know what you should do.’ Lyall had been making some tea in his small, modest kitchen. Remus’s old house was small and cosy, sitting in the midst of a village in Yorkshire. His father loved his home and took every care with it that Hope had. He cleaned and cooked and played music the same way she used to. Remus loved that.

He didn’t visit home often, usually preferring to stay safely away from his father’s quiet life in the country, but when he did come home, it was some of the most insightful conversations he’d ever had. 

‘And what’s that?’ Remus teased as Lyall handed him his tea, laughing at his son.

‘You know very well what.’ Lyall chuckled, sipping on his steaming tea. ‘I’ll admit, I wasn’t at all happy when I first heard you’d been seeing a student, not happy at all. I thought you’d ruined your best chance at a somewhat normal life, but seeing you happy, truly happy for the first time, has changed my mind. Remus, your mother would be screaming at you to marry this young woman, she has made it possible for you now and though I haven’t quite got the voice-‘

‘Or the intimidation technique.’ Remus cut in, playfully.

‘Or the intimidation technique.’ Lyall agreed, with a slight shudder. Remus’s mother, as kind as she had always been, was still a stern mother at heart and Remus loved that. ‘I have to admit, seeing my son married and having the best life he can, with the most beautiful woman he can find, would make me very happy… so, what’s stopping you?’

Remus sipped his tea. His mind had flickered towards a small pile of work waiting for him on his office desk, he knew it was a tactic his mind had created to stop him thinking too hard on the ins and outs of his relationship with Angelina, but it wouldn’t work this time. 

‘She is.’ Remus said simply, and his father nodded, somewhat understanding. ‘You remember I told you about her struggles with social standings?’ Lyall nodded. ‘Well, it seems, given time, that will no longer be a factor. She’s making connections quicker than ever… but she’s never made her exact feelings known to me.’

‘She’s in love with you though?’ 

‘I’m almost certain.’

‘Almost?’

‘I’ve told her I love her on numerus occasions, she’s never said it back and I think some part of me fears that.’

Lyall sighed and sat back in his chair and observed his son’s thoughts. ‘Well, that is quite the predicament, have you asked her if she loves you?’

Remus bobbed his head from side to side. ‘Not as directly as maybe I should have, but she has admitted she feels very differently towards me than anyone else. I’m taking that as a good thing.’

Lyall chuckled and took another sip of his tea. ‘Your mother would know exactly what to say here. She was always better at this than I was.’

‘She was good at a lot of things.’

‘Not unlike your Angelina.’ 

Remus chuckled and absorbed the sound of the snow caking the windows outside.

‘I hope you never lose her.’ Lyall suddenly said with a deep sadness to his eyes. ‘It’s such a thing to lose the woman you love and know you’ll never hold her again. Take care of her Remus, take good care of her.’

Remus reached over and gently held his father’s slightly shaking hand. ‘I will, I promise.’

 

I wasn’t sure what had gotten into me, maybe it was that Darren had taken Clara out for dinner or that Remus was looking especially happy with himself, it could have been the fact my parents wouldn’t have been home for at least a few hours. More likely, it was that my life was finally looking up. I had a career going for myself, I had a loving family and a man who I adored more than anything, very few things were able to get me down. It was just what I needed after all that had happened during the summer.

Remus was chuckling slightly as I kissed him. His beard a little scruffier than usual as it was the holidays and I loved feeling that against my neck. His hands roamed down my waist and I could feel him between my legs growing more and more aroused. 

‘Can we-‘ Remus pulled back slightly to ask his question. ‘Can we do this in your bedroom? I’d rather not get caught if your father decides to come home early.’ 

I had to laugh. ‘Good idea.’ I pulled him up off of the sofa and soon closed the door to my bedroom.

Remus unbuttoned his jacket and hung it on the back of my chair. I leaned against my bedroom door watching him, he could see something was on my mind and sighed slightly.

‘Changing your mind?’ He asked, but in a way that told me it was okay if I did.

‘No.’ I shook my head and gestured for him to sit with me on my bed. ‘I can already feel myself going red.’ I laughed and Remus just smiled at me, waiting patiently. He let his fingers drift over my thigh and it gave me a small amount of confidence to say what I wanted to say. ‘I want to have sex with you, but differently.’ I just wanted to curl up in a ball and hide in a dark hole forever.

Remus frowned, trying to understand. ‘You mean you want to try a new position?’ He clarified.

‘Yeah.’ I said slowly. It wasn’t quite what I meant. I looked up at Remus and he just watched, waiting for me to explain further, but I didn’t really have the right words.

‘Let me try something,’ Remus grabbed one of my pillows and put it behind me. ‘Lie back and close your eyes.’ He said, and I did exactly that, putting all of my trust in Remus. He began stroking my head and I felt so relaxed. ‘I think this will help.’ He said, and I felt him adjusting his position to get a little closer to me and place his hand over mine on my stomach. ‘Think about what you want to ask me, just picture it in your mind and let yourself get absorbed in the idea.’

‘Like a patronus.’ I smiled, and I could feel Remus smiling down at me.

‘Exactly like a patronus.’ Remus gently kissed my forehead and I did what he asked.

I pictured a dream I’d had not so long ago, I pictured Remus watching me from across my room, I felt him kiss me the way I loved, his hands reaching the back of my thighs and without warning, lifting me up against my bedroom wall and his beard scratching against my neck.

‘You want me to kiss your neck?’ Remus asked, and if it wasn’t for the fact it was him I was imagining, I might have been shocked that someone was in my room. 

‘To lift me against the wall and kiss my neck.’ I said and let the rest of the dream play out. ‘To feel your hands under me, holding me against you, feel you stripping my clothes off quickly and kissing me hard. Have you whisper things that you’ve never whispered before, making me feel like yours. I want to be yours… I want you to turn me over on the bed and kiss my shoulder while you’re inside me.’ I heard Remus gasp slightly and his hand grip a little tighter on mine. I suddenly lost my confidence and stopped talking.

‘No, no, no, go back.’ Remus almost begged and I opened my eyes slightly to see his eyes were black. ‘I want you to keep talking.’

‘Really?’

‘Oh yes.’ Remus kissed me passionately. ‘I want to do that for you, I want to be that for you.’

‘Honestly?’ I couldn’t believe that my sweet, gentle Remus would want to do that for me. But everything told me that I would always be safe with Remus. 

‘I’ve told you before, you make me happy and I’d never hurt you.’ Remus smiled as his hand drifted over my stomach. ‘As long as we’re both honest, we can do anything you want… and hearing you say it like that, makes me want you in every way I can have you.’ 

It was one of the things I struggled with most, Remus and I being with each other in such a way for reasons I couldn’t quite grasp.

His lips, tongue and teeth drifted over every sensitive part of my body, mapping it out the same way he would to make me feel as good as possible. My clothes were in a pile behind Remus along with his and it was hard to tell what belonged to who, not that I cared, but I could feel my nerves getting the best of me.

‘Angelina.’ Remus whispered against my ear. I could feel him nudging me and it made my breath hitch every time. ‘Turn over.’ He said, and my excitement levels shot through the roof, I quickly moved and felt his lips over my back. The further up Remus went, the more my nerves began to get the better of me. ‘Are you alright?’ He asked, and I didn’t know how to reply, I felt Remus rest his head on my shoulder and sigh. ‘I can’t do this if you’re not okay.’ He sounded annoyed and I really didn’t know what to do. ‘Angelina?’ He said again.

‘I’m sorry.’ I swallowed and felt his body lean a little harder against me. ‘I’m sorry, Remus.’ I felt the lump in my throat grow twice the size in a matter of seconds. 

‘It’s fine.’ Remus said, but I could tell it wasn’t.

‘I’m so sorry.’ The tears couldn’t help, but run down my face. I felt like the biggest disappointment in the world. Like a child, curled up in a ball and weeping.

‘Angelina,’ Remus was breathing a little heavy, he came to lie next to me and began stroking my hair the same way he had done previously. ‘It’s really okay, it’s fine. We don’t need to do anything you’re not comfortable with.’ 

Why was I crying? Why was I being such a child? I wanted Remus, I wanted him like no one else, so why couldn’t I just allow myself to have confidence with him?

‘I just… I don’t know.’ I shook my head and closed my eyes.

‘Angelina, everything is fine.’ Remus tried to assure me. ‘You’ve been through a lot recently, I’m not surprised you’re not quite yourself.’

When I thought about it and I mean, really thought about it, he was right. I’d been through so much in such a short space of time. Jack was gone, I’d broken my back again, a dark wizard had tried to kill me, Benji and Jocelyne had twins, I was their godmother, Darren and I had bought a shop and Remus and I were having conversations about marriage and children. I was twenty years old and this was my life. 

‘What’s happening to me?’ I whimpered.

Remus took a breath. ‘Reality has hit you.’ He offered. ‘The reality of these past months has finally caught up to you and this is a perfectly normal response. I’m just glad I was here when it did happen… are you alright?’

Was I alright? Well, the obvious answer was, no. In fact, it was the only answer. I was stressed, I was upset and I was overwhelmed, I was not okay, not at all.

‘Hold me.’ 

Remus didn’t hesitate, he pulled the quilt up and curled his body behind me. I could feel his hardened length pressing against me and I immediately felt bad again.

‘Are you okay?’ I asked and felt Remus chuckle.

‘What do you mean?’

‘I mean, you’re still… erm… ready for me?’ I cringed and turned onto my back, my face flooding red again.

Remus laughed. ‘You mean I’m hard.’ He said, and I just rolled my eyes. ‘Yes, it appears I am, but it’s fine, I’m sure if we ignore it, it’ll go away.’

It was the moment, I can say with absolute certainty, that I knew we would last forever. I was panicking, I was upset and I was crying, but Remus still managed to pull a smile from me, he still made me want him, he still made me his entirely.

‘I think I’m okay.’ I said and smiled.

‘Really?’ His eyebrow raised slightly. ‘It really is fine if you’re not.’

I placed a very gentle kiss against Remus’s lips and it was enough to make him see that I wanted to at least try to be okay and that with him, I always would be.

 

‘Angie, we’re wasting time!’ 

The sky was red, the clouds were black. Everything was blurry. I lifted my wand and prayed that something resembling a defence was coming out of it. My head was killing me, it was like I’d been knocked out and was just coming around.

I could see my friends doing everything they could to slow down the attack. But, who were we fighting? Who was trying to hurt me this time? And where was Remus? 

‘Angie, RUN!’ It was the brother, fully formed, in the flesh, curled blonde hair and dark eyes, fighting the big fight along side me. 

I turned around to see the safety of a hill cave high above where the fighting was happening. 

‘I’ll come for you, just run!’ He roared again, and I scrambled to my feet, I didn’t even look at who it was I running past, I just ran. I ran until I couldn’t feel my legs anymore and then I ran even further. 

 

It was cold and wet and I couldn’t quite catch my breath. I sat bolt upright and felt the last of the energy in my legs returning slowly. It was like cramp, but worse. I couldn’t move my legs for the longest time and I couldn’t figure out why I had suddenly woken up. It must have been another nightmare. They had become more and more regular, but I only seemed to remember the ones that involved Jack dying all over again, like a memory playing out over and over again.

I could hear my wand falling off of the side table and it was what alerted Remus to my position.

‘Angelina?’ His eyes weren’t quite able to open. 

‘It’s nothing, it’s fine. Go back to sleep.’ I panted, but it only made Remus wake up even more. 

‘Another nightmare?’ He asked, sitting up and watching me with a curious frown. 

I nodded.

‘Do you need anything?’

I shook my head. 

‘I can stay up with you for a while if you want me to?’

I took a deep breath and hoped the feeling would come back into my legs soon and I could leave my claustrophobic room. 

It was freezing outside, but it was exactly what I needed. I needed something cold and refreshing. I had my blanket and I had my long black coat on beneath that, Remus was waiting in the kitchen for me to come back in, but I wasn’t ready yet. I just needed another few minutes to myself, to clear my head.

 

Remus couldn’t feel anything except worry. Angelina wasn’t quite handling things the way he had hoped. He wanted to believe that she was moving forward and finding a way to deal with everything that was happening. He could see how any normal person would be overwhelmed by the things that were happening in her life, but somehow Angelina had blocked it out and let it build in the back of her mind.

George had raised the idea that the brother may have had something to do with her reaction, but Remus knew that this was all Angelina. He’d seen it enough in the past to know it was her and not some foreign identity inside her, this was her.

She eventually came back in and Remus stood up, he was a little weak in the legs, but he did his best to help her out of her coat.

‘Feel any better?’ He asked and hung her coat on the back of one of the dining room chairs. 

‘No.’ She shook her head and Remus prepared himself for a long talk. ‘You’re going to be tired for your classes tomorrow. I feel bad about that.’ 

Remus blinked and took a moment, before he started smiling and giving a small chuckle. ‘Come on, let’s go back to bed.’ He said and shook his head. There was no point in saying it, he was tired, she was tired and there was plenty of time to talk about such trivial things.


	16. Attraction...

The shop had been open for a month and business was booming. Remus was very proud and a few people he knew were coming to the shop regularly, including Professor Sprout. In fact, a lot of the teachers were making visits, I wasn’t always there, but I at least heard about it.

I had grown enough product to last through the next four or five months, it would only need topping up every now and then and it gave me time to return to something a little more important. 

The runes I’d found in the Alban Hills. I wanted to go at them from a new angle, this time from a historical viewpoint. Of course, the brother wasn’t especially happy about any of it and kept trying to put me off. I ignored him and continued my research. Darren was curious about my progress and told me that his brother was trying to put him off researching it as well, this could only mean it was important.

I wrote letters to Professor Binns and Professor Babbling, sending them small sections and hoping they could point me in the right direction. I wrote to the museum in the Alban Hills to see if they knew anything of note about protective spells surrounding the birthplace and they had yet to get back to me.

Remus again raised his concerns, but again, I ignored them. I knew that I needed to know everything I could about the brothers and this was something I didn’t know. 

It took me a few moments between making myself a cup of tea and waiting for Remus to arrive, to really feel like I was sharing my body. That was the key word MY body. I was born with this, I grew up with it and I made it into what I call my own. I felt itchy beneath my skin and tried to scratch him out. The brother was an intruder, something that lived inside me and didn’t belong.

‘What are you doing?’ The brother coughed.

‘I don’t know.’ I sighed.

‘Angie, it’s no use, I cannot leave.’ He hissed. 

‘Why not? You don’t belong here. You’re ruining my life.’

‘Angelina?’ It was Remus. 

I turned to see him standing in the doorway, his frown looked all wrong, he was worried and concerned.

‘I’m fine, just tired.’ I don’t know why I lied, but Remus could see straight through me. 

 

He was staying the weekend and we decided to go camping in the Forest of Dean, Remus was more excited than I expected.

‘I’ve never seen wild Hinkypunks,’ he smiled. ‘I’m quite interested to see how they interact in their natural habitat.’ 

We walked a little further up the path towards a clearing where we could set up camp.

‘Well, there are Anglerfish and Red Capps that live by the water so we can go and see them tonight if you wanted?’

‘Sounds like a plan.’

So that’s what we did, we set up camp, we watched the wild creatures and we talked about things that didn’t matter… well, we talked about the shop and my research, that mattered.

We watched the stars for a while and stayed up most of the night talking, we slept well into the morning and left to head back to the castle for lunch. 

Remus was in an especially good mood, he’d enjoyed camping and enjoyed talking. That was, until we walked through the castle corridors and a new set of third year Hufflepuffs had grown slightly attached to him. I could see a small amount of annoyance building in the back of his mind, but I didn’t know what to do in that situation.

‘Nothing to be done, unfortunately.’ Remus sighed as we sat in the kitchens and had lunch together. ‘Students, will be students and there’s nothing we can do to stop them thinking whatever they like. I just have to make sure I’m not encouraging the behaviour.’

‘Why?’ I stopped eating and rolled my eyes, it seemed like such a stupid question, but then a hundred other thoughts all ran together and Remus could see each and every one of them.

‘Angelina,’ he sighed, again and reached over to hold my hand. ‘I can’t keep repeating myself and expect you to have a different reaction, it would be madness. So, let me explain it another way.’ He quickly looked to see if any of the house elves were listening, but they all seemed very absorbed in their tasks. ‘When you were a student and I realised that I had these feelings for you, I was ready to hand in my resignation and ensure that our paths never crossed again. I hated myself, not only for what I am, but for what I felt for you. All those things we talk about, when we’re alone and in your bedroom, I wanted those when you were seventeen. It’s hard to imagine how it made me feel-‘

‘It made you feel wrong inside.’ 

Remus slowly nodded. He had a brain wave. 

‘Probably the same way you feel with the brother?’

I nodded. ‘Do you still hate yourself?’

Remus bobbed his head from side to side. ‘I still worry about what I am. I worry that I’ll forget to take my wolfsbane, I worry that you’ll see me, I worry that others will see me, I even worry that Erin will let slip my condition in an effort to make more friends… but all of those worries are small and in reality, nothing to worry about. I’m scared enough to remember, I trust you enough to know that you’ll never see me like that, I take enough precautions and I know that Erin has a desire to remain as under the radar as possible… but yes, sometimes I have moments where I wish… I have moments that I hate myself.’ I took a moment to think about this. ‘It’s not as bad as it used to be, I used to regularly panic and write out resignation letters to Dumbledore, but I never handed them in. Please don’t think about it, I can see it’s hurting you.’

‘I don’t like that, I don’t like hearing it.’ I said, and like a stubborn child, I stuck my spoon into my soup and nudged the chunks of chicken around. 

‘Angelina.’ Remus said, quietly. I looked up to see that face I half hated, half wanted to kiss better. ‘I’m in love with you, you have to trust that that alone allows me to be happier than any man should be.’

I didn’t quite grasp the statement, but the first part I understood loud and clear and it still made my insides squirm every time he said it. 

‘I want to go back to the Alban Hills.’

Remus half laughed, not quite believing what I had just said. ‘Angelina, you can’t be serious?’

‘Why not?’

‘I tell you I’m in love with you and you tell me you’re planning to go somewhere dangerous. Even you can see how that sounds.’

‘I think it sounds like I’ve made a decision. I’m not ignoring what you said, I just don’t have a response to it yet.’

Remus took a breath and I could see his jaw clenching. ‘Fine. Why do you want to go to the Hills again?’

‘To figure out what the runes mean, they must mean something and if the brothers get anxious around them then it has be a good thing.’ I wasn’t exactly sure why I was trying to reason with Remus, I was going and that was it.

‘Do you think maybe, they’re anxious because it’s not a good thing? Because they might indicate something dangerous?’

‘I think they’re anxious because they’re scared.’ I was beginning to feel frustrated and that was never a good thing with Remus. ‘I think they don’t belong inside us and I think I need to find a way to get them out so that Darren and I can live normal lives.’

Remus quickly glanced around the kitchens again before leaning forward and taking my hand. ‘You need to stay calm, getting aggravated never does anyone any good, you know that. So, take a few days to think about this. I can’t come with you, Darren is competing in international matches over the next few weeks, you’d be alone. Do you really think this is a good idea?’

‘I don’t think it matters if I think this is a good idea any more, I think it just needs to be done.’

That was the end of the conversation. I didn’t really want to leave it there, I’d much rather have settled Remus’s fears, but I could still feel the itching beneath my skin and I knew I was getting restless without answers.

I went home and began packing my things, getting ready to leave as soon as I found out when the next portkey would be. I knew that there were frequent ones to Italy, but I didn’t want to travel too far out. 

‘You really are going?’ Darren had been watching me from the door to my lab. 

‘Yeah.’ I sighed and searched for the book I had been reading a week previous. 

‘I should come with you.’

‘You can’t, you have matches to play.’

‘I mean, if I could I would go with you, no arguments.’ 

I looked at my brother for a moment. My brother, handsome and strong as they came, a six-foot build, broad shouldered, dark messy hair and crisp blue eyes, looking more and more like dad every day. He was everything to me. I’d do anything for him. 

‘Darren, don’t you feel… wrong? I mean, inside? Don’t you feel… out of sync with everything?’ I didn’t have to use the right words, he knew what I meant.

‘Course I do! Angie, I feel like a mess. The only thing keeping me sane is you and Clara and I still feel off balance from time to time. I don’t want these things inside us, I want us to be like normal people… but I don’t have your brains, if anyone is going to work out a way to get them out of us, it’s you.’ Darren smiled and cocked his head to the side. ‘You’ll be careful, won’t you? You’ll stay safe and not take any unnecessary risks?’

I couldn’t help but laugh a little. Darren was one of only two people who could make that happen. ‘I’ll do my best.’

The next portkey left a week later and I was determined to take it. Remus had asked me to reconsider, but I really couldn’t see the point. If I didn’t go now, I would only go later and it might have been too late. I wasn’t sure if time was a factor, but in case it was, I wasn’t risking it.

 

Remus was going out of his mind with worry. Angelina hadn’t listened to him and it worried him immensely. He wasn’t looking to control her, or even decide her life for her, but he wanted her to at least see that he was looking out for her and had her best interests at heart. George had trusted him to guide her in the right direction and he felt he had failed in that respect.

However, Remus knew that Angelina had unpresented ability to make it out of tight situations if she need to, she wasn’t a child anymore, she knew the difference between taking an unnecessary risk and making it out in one piece.

He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t taken the runes more seriously beforehand. She had spoken about them with some urgency and that should have been his cue to investigate what he could about them. He’d tried the school library, looking through the restricted section as well as asking Dumbledore for any pointers.

‘This seems to be concerning you greatly, Remus.’ He said one afternoon when Remus had caught up to him in a corridor. 

‘Angelina is currently in the Alban Hills and I’m worried that she might be putting herself at more risk than she realises.’ Remus was vaguely aware that he was close to running late for his last class of the day.

Dumbledore nodded and thought about something, though knowing Dumbledore, he might well have just been lost in some unrelated thought. ‘I would suggest speaking with an Ancient Runes expert, as I recall, I hired one to teach here.’ 

Remus resisted with everything he had to avoid rolling his eyes, he considered going to Professor Babbling, but often she would grow nervous around him. He was fairly certain she had grown up surrounded by people who heavily discriminated against werewolves, Remus was sure she didn’t share the same opinion, but more likely she had been told in a less than kind fashion to keep that opinion to herself. Remus sympathised for her, it can’t have been easy to be in that position.

He decided to go and see her anyway after classes and quickly rushed to his own classroom to find his fourth year Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors settling into their seats.

‘Right, settle down everyone.’ Remus said and strode up to his desk, quickly checking his lesson plan. ‘Can I assume some of you have at least glanced at nocturnal beasts in your advanced textbooks?’ There was a faint murmur, a shifting of guilty eyes and the usual suspects giving slightly more enthusiastic reactions. ‘Good, for those of you who haven’t read it, we’ll be looking a little deeper into werewolves, unicorns, centaurs and vampires. I’ll remain fair as I always try to be and let you decide where to start.’ Remus finally took his teaching robe off and adjusted his waistcoat and tie. ‘Raise your hand for vampires.’ Very few. ‘Centaurs.’ Even fewer. ‘Unicorns.’ A few more. ‘Right, werewolves it is.’ 

Remus never felt the dread as much as he used to, but despite the effect Angelina had had on him, he always tried to be cautious around the subject.

‘Sir?’

‘Yes, Michael?’

‘Is it true that you know Angie Lockwood, the werewolf expert?’ Remus felt his heart lift a little.

‘It is indeed, I’ve known her for a long time now.’

‘And is it also true that her brother is Darren Lockwood, the quidditch player?’

‘I’ve known the Lockwood family for a long time, they’re a very accomplished family. Is this leading onto a question about werewolves?’

There was an uncomfortable pause.

‘Is it true they’re werewolves, sir?’

Remus felt his face set into a heavy frown.

‘Why would you think that?’

‘Please sir,’ Charlie, the boy sitting next to him chimed in. ‘We were just trying to figure out how she knew so much about werewolves.’

Remus took and breath and picked up the textbook behind him, he needed to put a stop to the train of thought before it ruined Angelina’s career. 

‘They are not werewolves. Angelina’s father is a Healer at St Mungo’s and she would often go there as a child, she was bound to pick up a thing or two about the different ailments that her father encountered. And her mother is a very high ranking Auror, make of that what you will. One of her best friends is now the lead Auror on werewolf cases and another is… was the lead Healer on all werewolf cases. She has been surrounded by an interest in them all her life.’ Remus could feel the tension at his correction. He cleared his throat and took another breath. ‘Any other questions?’

There was a moment before Remus was happy that their curiosity had been settled enough that he could continue his lesson. He took them through the theory and began counting down the minutes before he could finish for the day.

‘Next time, we will be looking at centaurs, so please, read the chapter and get a head start.’ Remus knew they never would, most of his students were more concerned with their social lives than learning about centaurs, but he needed to make the effort. He took an apple out of his desk drawer and indicated his desk where they should have put their homework. 

Remus leaned against one of the wooden tables that ran around the edge of his classroom and took a bite from his apple. He knew he shouldn’t have skipped lunch, but he had been busy in the library. 

He was far too absorbed in thought to even register right away that Michael was still sitting in his seat, frowning at his desk. Remus really wasn’t in the mood to be the comfort he usually tried to be with his students, but he would never turn any one of them down. 

‘Something bothering you Michael?’ Remus asked, still chewing on his apple, he loosened his tie and threw it onto his desk, opening his top two shirt buttons.

‘Yes sir.’ 

There was a long pause where Remus allowed him to take all the time in the world to say what he wanted to say.

‘I think… I think, I know what I want to do for a career.’ Not quite what Remus expected, but he was glad to hear it anyway.

Remus swallowed his mouthful and casually strolled up to his desk, organising the essays into a neater pile. ‘Well, that is good news, but why do I feel there is a catch?’

Michael smiled a little. ‘I want to be an Auror, but I don’t know if I can.’

‘Why would you think that?’ Remus knew that it was a tough profession, but plenty of his students had become Aurors before and he had always done his bit, whether it was extra tutoring or writing out recommendations for the ones that may have struggled a little. 

‘My dad wants me to work in his shop, he fixes brooms, but I don’t want to fix brooms for the rest of my life.’ Michael was clearly upset and Remus felt for him. 

Remus took a breath and sat down next to Michael, still chewing his apple. ‘Have you spoken to your father about it?’

‘Any time I try, he just yells and tells me I’ll never work for the ministry.’ 

Remus felt his heart pull for the young man. 

‘Well, I can only tell you to follow your heart and if studying to be an Auror will make you happy, then that’s what you should do, and your father will eventually come to understand.’ 

Remus knew it wasn’t exactly insightful, but it was the best he had to offer. A father son relationship was a difficult thing at the best of times. Michael still didn’t look convinced either.

‘Why do you want to be an Auror, Michael?’

‘I want to help people.’ It was like instinct; his response was quick enough that Remus had no doubt that he would make a good Auror. ‘Some people come to my dads shop and try to take advantage of him, I wish I could do something to help.’

Remus sighed. ‘Then, I suggest you study hard and work towards getting into the Auror program. If you need any help, my door is always open. I know a few people who might be able to help you in your endeavours.’ 

Michael smiled. ‘Thank you, professor. My sister always said you were good to her.’

‘Your sister?’

‘Laura, Laura Appleby, she’s in seventh year, Ravenclaw. She said told me a lot about you and how good a teacher you are, so thanks.’ Remus groaned internally, she was one of the students that made him feel uncomfortable in his skin. Michael seemed to be talking on automatic and his thoughts were elsewhere.

‘Well, I do my best.’ Remus sighed and checked his watch. ‘Unfortunately, my time is a little short just now, but before I head off to this meeting, is there anything else I can help you with just now?’ Remus was begging for the answer to be no. 

‘No, it’s fine.’ Michael smiled again and handed over his essay for Remus to mark along with the others. 

‘Very well, let me know if that changes.’ Remus took the last bite of his apple and stood up to place Michael’s essay on top of the others. He heard his classroom door close as Michael left and quickly looked around to check he was definitely alone, before hastily gathering up the essays and racing up to his office.

Remus threw the essays into prime position on his desk and grabbed his copy of some of the symbols Angelina had found. He stopped for just a moment, wondering how he should have approached his meeting with Bathsheda Babbling. He sighed and took his waistcoat off, tucking his shirt in a little more and rolling up his sleeves to his elbows. Remus hated how the young female students looked at him when he dressed like this, hopefully it would have the desired effect on the professor as well.

Throwing his apple core away, he ran back down to leave his classroom and head to the sixth floor.

Most of the students could see he was in a hurry and made no attempt to interrupt his long strides up the staircases and down the corridors. Bathsheda was just finishing her last class of the day and the fifth year students were dragging their tired feet out of the classroom. Remus nodded in greeting to some of them and gave his usual friendly smile before stepping into the cramped room that smelt a lot like the scrolls in the library.

Remus was cautious for a moment or two, allowing Babbling to finish collecting her essays.

‘Bathsheda.’ Remus smiled and tried to give off as friendly a smile as possible. She suddenly looked startled and the ongoing internal battle began behind her eyes. ‘I was wondering if I might take a moment of your time, I just have a few things I can’t quite translate and seeing as you’re the expert, I thought it best to ask instead of trying to struggle with it alone.’

He could see his stupid little gesture of running his hand threw his hair and looking a little bashful, was doing its desired job.

‘Well, yes, I have some time.’ Her voice shook, and Remus was careful to approach her desk slowly and place his notes down, allowing her room to look at them. 

‘They were found in Italy, dating back nearly three thousand years if it helps at all?’ Remus took a small step back and watched the nervous professor slip on her big round glasses and observe the symbols. Remus could see her relaxing into her task, gradually becoming more and more absorbed by what was in front of her. 

‘Italy, you say?’ Her voice was still a little shaky, but her curiosity was getting the better of her. 

Remus smiled and nodded. ‘Yes, close to Rome.’

‘I have to say Remus, its strange that you would come across something as dark as this, but-‘

‘Dark?’ Remus couldn’t help his interruption. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Well, this is blood magic, ancient.’ Babbling seemed not to notice Remus’s worry and continued to get excited about the new symbols in front of her. ‘If I had to guess, and I am just guessing, but it looks to be a collection of spells.’

Remus swallowed and tried to steady his breathing. ‘Do you know what kind of spells they might be?’

‘Well, there are several theories, but looking at a few of these clusters, it looks to be something along the lines of containing something.’

‘Containing something?’

‘Yes, an object possibly.’ She nodded and looked back at the notes and began tracing her long fingers over them. ‘Whatever it contained must have been powerful though, even three thousand years ago, blood magic wasn’t taken lightly, only used when there was little other option.’

Remus really didn’t need her to tell him about blood magic, he was well aware of the reasons why it was no longer used.

‘Well, I wouldn’t want to take any more of your time.’ Remus said, as gently as he could. Babbling looked up again and returned to her usual nervous and shaky self. ‘Thank you for your help, Bathsheda.’

‘That’s quite alright, I don’t feel as though I have been much use.’ She attempted a chuckle, but her voice just wasn’t equipped for it and her cheeks turned pink. She quickly tidied up the pile of notes and with a shaking hand, gave them back to him. ‘I don’t have an exact translation for your symbols, but I do have a book that might help?’

Remus gave a small smile. ‘That would be more than appreciated.’ He was all too anxious to leave the now claustrophobic classroom and return to his own office, but Remus extended his patience to allow the professor to collect a book from the back shelf.

 

I made my way to the base of the Hills I had climbed two summers before. I was about to turn twenty-one and could not have felt older, my joints were already stiff and my body was already aching like an old woman. I had brought my broom with me and flew up to the settlement that I knew would still be there.

‘Angie, why are we here again?’ It was the brother. He sounded exasperated.

‘Because, I need you out of my body and this seems to be somewhere you don’t like, I’m going to find out why.’ I landed just on the outskirts of the hills and it was much colder than it had been during the summer. I hugged, my long black coat tighter to my body and began walking through the ruins once again. 

My attention was drawn in every direction, I couldn’t quite focus on where I should have started, but at the statue of the she-wolf, seemed as good a place as any. It was blackened and about as large as my animagus, covered in symbols and those symbols extended to the base that it stood on. I wondered if that was important.

‘My mother.’ The brother sighed.

‘Do you miss her?’

The brother didn’t respond and I had to assume that meant something. I let my rucksack fall next to me and stepped right up to the statue. I was almost sure I could feel something, I wasn’t sure what, it didn’t feel dark or light or warm or cold, or like anything really. Maybe I was imagining things.

I pulled my wand out and kept a firm grip while I circled the statue, looking for anything that might help me figure out what the symbols meant. 

I spent the better part of four hours searching for something and hoping I would simply know it when I saw it, but nothing happened. I sat down on a nearby rock and sighed.

‘Why won’t you help me?’ I asked.

‘Because there’s nothing here.’ The brother said.

‘Well, that’s an outright lie, there’s plenty here, there’s a statue of your mother with symbols I don’t recognise covering her… if that was me, I’d be pretty curious if nothing else. Why are you afraid of this place?’

‘I’m not afraid.’

‘Uncomfortable then. Don’t even try and deny it, I can feel it as well. It’s unnerving, but I’m not leaving until I get form of answer.’ 

The brother said nothing.

‘Well, that’s mature, giving me the silent treatment.’

He still remained quiet and I gave up trying. I remained in the settlement until the sun began to descend, deciding it was time to fly back down the hill to another pub where I could rest for the night.


	17. ...Comes At A Price.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how can I possibly make it up to you guys? I cannot believe how long it has been since my last update, I cannot apologise enough.
> 
> I can't tell you everything as I don't think it's right or even relevant, but I have been dealing with some issues and events that have arisen during the Christmas and New Year period, one of which is my dog has a tumour on his heart, I'm devastated, but these things happen and he's an old dog so its not unexpected that he would have a few health problems. The other things are far too personal to go into, but I hope you can all understand and forgive me for it. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this new chapter and please feel free to email me or leave comments, I read them all! Hope you are all well! : )

It was getting frustrating to say the least. I had been in Italy for nearly a month and nothing seemed to be improving. I was back up and down the hill every day, taking notes, researching anything I could to figure out the symbols, the brother had no input and I’d even asked the local museum for anything they could help me with.

I decided to check out a local muggle museum to see if anything there was useful. I did everything I could to blend in, I kept my wand hidden and even wore my glasses as I’d observed so many muggles wearing them. 

I wandered into the spacious marble hall and had to double take a painting, I was expecting it to start moving, but nothing happened. How did muggles do it? How did they just watch a still painting for hours on end? It didn’t even talk back.

It was still cold so I kept my long coat on, but again kept it simple with my black jeans and white t shirt. I thought I did quite well in looking like everyone else. No one was paying any attention to me and I heard a tour starting and decided to join them as the old woman took the small group of tourists around the museum.

‘Fascinating, isn’t it?’ A man in his mid-twenties said, as we stood in front of what was apparently a famous picture of Romulus and Remus. I turned to see him properly. He looked very plain, dark messy hair and a scruffy beard with black framed glasses, smart navy jeans, dark red jumper and a broad, tall build. ‘The painting I mean.’ He was from England, that much was obvious.

‘Yeah, it is.’ I nodded, smiling and wondering why exactly I was talking to a stranger.

‘The story is amazing, a wild animal caring for two young children and helping them growing into strong warriors. Such a classic.’ The man seemed very satisfied with his thoughts and I couldn’t help but smile. ‘I’m Fran, by the way.’ He held out his hand and running on automatic, I took it.

‘Angie.’ I smiled again. 

‘Angie.’ He tested the word. ‘Sorry, I just saw that you were standing on your own and seeing as I’m alone as well, I thought we could continue the tour together?’

‘Sure. I wouldn’t mind the company.’ There was something strangely familiar about Fran’s attitude and I was a little wary of it, not knowing if it was a good thing.

‘So, are you here on holiday?’ He asked, and I took a breath, not sure how to respond.

‘A research trip, you?’ Vague and concise.

‘Uni trip, I’m studying Roman Mythology.’ He explained. So he was still at school, I tried to remember as much as I could from my Muggle studies classes and knew that muggles went to school from the ages of around four or five, right up until the were twenty-one. I admired it somewhat, their eagerness to learn and grow was incredible. 

We ended up wandering around the museum for another hour or so, mostly Fran telling me about the story of Romulus and Remus, I tried to pass it off as not knowing anything so that I didn’t let slip the true nature of the story. Soon we moved onto each other and this was a subject I was especially careful with. Fran was originally from Italy and his parents had moved to England before he was born.

The museum was closing and I still had no more information on the brothers than I had before I got there. 

‘So, what would you say if I asked you to have dinner with me?’ Alarm bells began ringing in my ears and I knew that question.

‘Erm… I should really get back.’ Why was my voice shaky?

‘Do you have a boyfriend?’ Fran smiled, why was his smile so charming? ‘Because if you don’t then I’d love to get dinner with you, but if the answer is yes, then I would still love to have dinner with you. I know a place just up the road.’ 

Surely, there wasn’t any harm in getting dinner with him, it was a muggle town, nothing too bad could happen to me there. 

‘Alright, but I have to get back straight after.’ I gave in.

‘Excellent.’ Fran smiled a huge warm smile and I couldn’t help my laugh. 

He knew so much about Rome and the history of it, he told me of the muggle wars and about a man called Caesar, it was fascinating and I knew that if I had been born a muggle, I would likely have studied something similar to Fran.

We stopped at a small café and I let him take the lead, trying my best to follow in his step. We sat down in a small corner of the café and it seemed he was on good terms with the staff working there, he spoke fluent Italian and I almost recognised a few words from my time spent in the country.

‘Thank you for making my day more bearable.’ He said, leaning forward. His dark eyes never drifted from mine and I felt a little self-conscious. 

‘I’m sure you would have found someone else to hang around with had I not shown up.’ I joked. 

‘I doubt anyone else would have caught my attention.’ Alarm bells began ringing again and I cleared my throat looking away. 

‘Tell me about uni.’ I distracted his attention and we began talking about muggle University, it sounded much like my last two years at Hogwarts, drinking and partying in between studying and stressing about trivial social things. Well, one of those years included me fighting off a dragon which I neglected to mention, I wasn’t sure if he would think I was mad for saying it. 

It was another two hours of a perfectly plain evening, we spoke more about the story of the brothers and I asked a few questions that he seemed eager to answer, but still none of it was particularly useful to my cause. The café was closing and it was dark outside, I needed to get back to the pub and make my notes.

‘So, can I see you again?’ When did he get so close? I was surprised to find it wasn’t exactly unwelcome. He was warm and comforting.

‘Erm… I’m not sure. I had a great time with you today, it was nice learning from you, but I have to get back.’ I could see faint disappointment drifting over his thoughts. 

‘That’s okay.’ He shook his head and awkwardly laughed. ‘I had a wonderful time and I truly hope this isn’t the last time I see you.’ 

I smiled and tried to think of something comforting to say, but Fran would probably never see me again and I was scared to tell him that. He moved his arms out to hug me and I decided there was no harm in it.

He was warm and strong and soft and so like Remus. My Remus, what was I doing?! Fran was a muggle, I had Remus, what was I thinking? Why would I entertain Fran like this? 

I felt Fran pull back, but not far enough. Those wonderfully dark eyes bore into mine and somehow they became even darker. ‘You’re very beautiful.’ He said and it was like a gong boomed in my mind, Fran gently leaned in and I pulled away.

‘I’m sorry, I just… I have to go.’ I said. Fran looked incredibly disappointed and a little hurt. ‘I’m sorry Fran.’

I didn’t wait for him to say anything else, before hurrying back towards the museum where I could apparate behind it.

I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream, why did I let things get that far? It was so quick as well, what had taken Remus and I nearly a year to do, Fran and I had nearly done in a matter of hours. It was too fast and too overwhelming, I needed Remus. I needed him.

 

I woke up feeling that same sense of guilt that I felt for the previous three weeks since meeting Fran. I hadn’t written to Remus since then for fear that he would find out, but I knew I couldn’t keep it up forever.

This would be my last day in the Alban Hills before I took a portkey back to England. Benji needed my help with a case, it wasn’t urgent, but the next portkey wouldn’t leave for another week and I doubted it could wait that long. I packed up all of my things and said my goodbyes to the pub owners who had been incredibly kind to me over the past month.

The brother had been suspiciously quiet since I arrived and it hadn’t gone unnoticed by me.

‘So, this is the last day we’ll be here, you’ll be glad to hear.’ I said as I set up my research tools the same way I had every other day since getting there. ‘Still not talking to me? That’s fine, I’ve enjoyed the peace and quiet.’ I had almost copied all of the symbols from the wolf statue, just a few on the base to go. I filed what I had away in the collection of notes in my bag and went about my usual scan of the settlement.

There was nothing different, nothing new, just the usual ruins of a once inhabited village. Somehow, I had missed a rock in the middle of my path and tripped over it, catching myself on some rubble and getting some small cuts up my arms and over my hands.

‘Why won’t you help me?!’ I yelled. ‘Why are you stopping me from fixing this? Aren’t you tired of this?!’

‘Yes!’ the bother yelled back, finally he was speaking to me again. ‘But Romulus must pay for what he has done.’

‘Then, why don’t you let me find out how to kill him?’ Silence again. I felt the anger reaching its limits and began throwing whatever I could in any direction I could before getting tired and heading back to the wolf statue. 

My legs were a little tired and I used the statue as a support to help me get over some of my things that I’d left scattered over the ground. I picked up my coat and wand and opened my rucksack for everything to make its way from the ground into it. 

I wasn’t sure what made me turn around, but when I did, I couldn’t help but feel the statue was staring at me, like it was suddenly alive and looking straight into me.

 

Remus was angry, not furious, but the students noticed his short temper and clipped responses. He did everything he could, everything in his power to remain calm and get through his day. 

Why had she not written in nearly a month? She knew how important it was to him that she stay safe, so why make him think otherwise? He had received a small note that morning from her to say that she was returning home. It had been nearly two months since he saw her, he wrote to her nearly every day, doing anything he could to help her in her research, but he suddenly felt very unappreciated and didn’t bother replying to her message. 

He needed to think for a while.

‘So glad you could make it Remus.’ Lily gave him one of her warm, strong hugs and he tried to reciprocate, but she felt his restraint. ‘What’s wrong?’ She immediately asked as they made their way inside the house. 

James had invited Remus over for Easter and while he was feeling a little lonely in the castle, he wondered if this was going to be a bad choice given Lily’s ability to read him so well. Remus sat down in his usual seat at the kitchen table and James put a cup of tea down in front of him.

‘You look tired.’ James laughed, but Remus didn’t feel much like joining in. 

‘Remus, did something happen with Angie?’ Lily asked, it caught James’s full attention. He was busy making dinner, but didn’t for a second take his ears away from the conversation.

‘No, she’s been in Italy for the last couple of months, she’s only written to me a handful of times.’ He sighed and sipped his steaming tea. He felt his age, all thirty-one years catching up to him. He was beginning to think he wouldn’t ever settle into a life where Angelina went off on her adventures for a few months at a time. 

‘What do you mean? Doesn’t she normally write every week?’ Lily was taking her questioning a bit far for Remus’s liking.

‘Yes, but she hasn’t.’ 

Lily knew when to give in. 

Remus cheered up a little when Harry came home. He’d been at Ron’s most of the day and told Remus all about what he was up to over the past year. Remus was patient and calm when the young boy spoke, it was a welcome distraction from everything else that had been happening.

‘You need to speak to her.’ Lily said quietly, as Remus was about to leave for the evening. ‘I don’t know what happened, I don’t care, but I don’t like seeing my friend upset like this.’ James was descending the stairs after seeing Harry to bed. 

Remus sighed. ‘I know. I will.’ 

‘Will you? Because I know that tone.’ Lily was pushing it now. He said he would, why was that not good enough for her? ‘Remus, you can’t let anything get your way with her, we can see how in love you are with her, so just talk to her and work it out.’

‘I hate to admit it, but she’s right.’ James said just as quietly so as not to disturb Harry. ‘You’ve got to talk to her face to face. It’s no good sulking about it.’

Remus took a fresh breath as he opened the door to their home. ‘I will.’ He said and left without another word. The full moon would be up in a week’s time and he would need to be fresher for the students coming back to school. 

 

The case Benji had been dealing with all week was finally being closed. I could see that his work was getting to him, but Benji couldn’t stop smiling when I mentioned Jocelyne and the twins. It was like all the tiredness and the stress left him and he was happy.

‘They’re great, exhausting, but great.’ Benji said as we got to the reception of the ministry. I felt a strange whip in my chest and kept my focus forward when I walked past a particularly familiar part of the reception. It had nearly been a year since Jack died and I didn’t feel any better about it, it still hurt as much as it did. ‘So, you and David heading out tonight?’

I took a breath and shook my thoughts of Jack. ‘Yeah, we’re just going for a drink, it’ll be nice to catch up with him.’

‘Well, just make sure it’s only one.’ Benji chuckled. I frowned. ‘He’s just been putting away a lot of drink the last year or so, Jocelyne noticed when he was talking about drinking Remus under the table at the wedding. I don’t know if I remember the last time I saw him drinking tea or pumpkin juice.’ Benji didn’t seem as concerned about it as I thought he might have been, but then he might well have been thinking about his wife and children again. 

I found David outside the pub on the other side of Diagon Alley, he looked as if he’d already started drinking with a wizard I didn’t recognise.

‘David.’ I caught his attention and he embraced me in a huge hug.

‘Angie, it’s so good to see you.’ He laughed. ‘Come on, lets get a drink and you can tell me all about your trip.’

For a while I forgot about what Benji had said and simply enjoyed my time with my friend, that was until he ordered four Firewhiskeys and even I thought it was a bit much.

‘Come on, Angie, we’re just having fun.’ He convinced me. ‘Tell me more about Italy, you said you went to a muggle museum, what did you think?’

I felt my face burn red and that familiar guilt come back tenfold, I decided if anyone was going to have any advice, it was David. He seemed to follow the story with a bit of difficulty and I wasn’t surprised given how much alcohol he’d consumed, but he sympathised all the same.

‘If you’re asking me what I honestly think, I’d say you got lonely.’ He finished off his glass of whiskey and thought for a moment. ‘You said you didn’t kiss him, so as far as I can see, you just had dinner with a friend, we do that all the time and there’s nothing wrong with that. I think you should tell Remus though, he’ll be worried that you haven’t written for a while and even more so given what you’ve been researching.’

Maybe he was right, even in his state, he was still more clear headed around the subject of relationships than me. I needed to talk to Remus.

I needed to do a lot of things, but first and foremost, I needed to go home and sleep.

 

The shop had been doing well and somehow we had profited in the last month of it being open. Alfred and Alice had built up a loyal customer base and many of the same people returned for their monthly order, I sent over the fresh product and spent the weekend replanting and wondering what to write to Remus.

 

Remus,

It seems stupid to apologise for not writing sooner, I imagine it would only frustrate you further if I did.

Thank you for helping me with your notes on blood magic, it was appreciated, but unfortunately, I am still at a loss for what it all means, it will take some more time to figure everything out.

In the meantime, I need to talk to you about some things.

Let me know if you’re free.

Yours 

Angelina

 

Remus sighed, reading the letter twice before putting it down and thinking on how feeble it was. Though a few years previous, he hadn’t been much better. He wrote back inviting her to the castle any night that week as all his classes finished early for the study period.

He had been waiting for a few of his seventh year Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs to come to his classroom for a little duelling lesson as they had their exams soon and felt they needed the extra lesson to pass with confidence. The truth was that none of the students that eventually came to his classroom would fail, but if they felt they needed a confidence boost then it was his job to do just that. 

The sun streaked into his classroom and Remus wandered around the groups of students, most of which were his admirers, and did his best to teach them anything extra that they might need to know. He was aware that he was just wearing his grey shirt without anything extra covering his body, but it was far too warm to entertain anything else.

‘Sir?’ 

‘Yes, Kyle?’ Remus watched for the young man’s question.

‘I was just wondering if you could show us what a good shield charm looks like?’ Kyle was a smart student and often enjoyed watching his teachers perform spells before practising them himself. 

‘Well, I can’t see the harm in it.’ Remus nodded. ‘Any volunteers to fire off a stunner?’ Most of the classroom put their hands up and it made Remus chuckle a little. ‘I didn’t realise you were so eager to stun me.’ He joked and most of them laughed. ‘Right, well, Kyle seeing as you asked… everyone else stand to the side, let’s see what you’ve got.’

Remus heard the excited hum of the classroom and he had to admit, he was a little excited as well. That was until everyone turned to the door, apparently someone had knocked.

‘Come in.’ Remus called, thinking it was a late student and taking his position closer to his desk, when he turned back, it was to find Angelina edging her way into the room slowly. ‘Angelina.’ Remus breathed, he hadn’t meant to and it made the female students roll their eyes and look a little miserable at her presence. Though he was sure she didn’t notice. 

‘Sorry, I didn’t realise you were busy. I can come back.’ Remus could tell her voice was off. ‘Are you duelling?’ A sharp change.

‘Yes, we’re learning about the shield charm. Please come in.’ Remus gestured for her to take a seat at his desk and observe the class. He had missed her so much and desperately wanted to kiss her, but in front of his seventh years was hardly appropriate. She sat and waited patiently, and Remus returned to face Kyle. ‘Right, now, where were we?’

‘I was about to send a decent stunner your way, sir.’ Kyle said cheekily, and the room hummed in response. 

‘Alright, let’s have it then.’ Remus shot back, he heard Angelina laugh behind him and it filled him with a little joy.

Admittedly Kyle’s stunner was more powerful than he was expecting, but it was still no match for Remus who had been keeping his skills sharp over the years he had been teaching. A few other students had a go before someone asked if Angelina wanted to try.

‘Oh no, I don’t want to disturb the lesson.’ She retreated into her shell and Remus knew she just needed a little coaxing to come back out. 

‘Miss Lockwood has been travelling around the world, researching all sorts of deadly creatures and hunting even deadlier wizards, gathering her skills and becoming a highly accomplished witch… but if she doesn’t think she can handle a school teacher, we can’t blame her.’ Remus listened to the slight laughter and interested buzz that ran around the room. He looked to find Angelina, smiling, but playfully unimpressed.

‘I could never turn down a challenge like that, Professor Lupin, are you sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?’ She said and stood, pulling her wand out. 

‘How about a training duel? You remember the Triwizard drills?’

‘Of course.’ She said and took the position she took all those years ago in front of his desk, with a good distance between them. ‘In preparation for not only fighting off a dragon, but also entering a maze, I did drills against my friends to improve my reaction time.’ Remus caught on to the fact that she was neglecting to mention that it was Remus and not her friends who she trained with. ‘First position was simple, block a disarming spell.’ Remus fired off a simple disarm spell and she blocked it was ease. ‘Second position, dodge two disarming spells.’ Again, she did so with ease. ‘Third, block three spells of the attacker’s choice.’ Remus continued to keep it simple and she blocked every one of his spells. ‘Fourth and final position, return the attacker’s own spell.’

‘Let’s keep it casual.’ Remus reminded her, and she nodded in agreement. He sent her a charm that was designed to give him a huge beard, which it did. The class laughed, and Remus bowed slightly, making quick work of his new facial hair. He was glad to see her mood had improved a little. ‘Right, why don’t we try a few drills and see where we are.’

Remus continued teaching his class and Angelina had taken herself up to his office to read through the blood magic book that he still hadn’t returned to Professor Babbling. His chest grew a little tighter when he thought about his last visit to her.

‘…and good luck to you all, I’m sure you will pass with flying colours, any issues, my door is always open.’ Remus said, as the students began to collect their things and returned the room to its original state. Remus took a breath and turned to check if all of the students had left. All but one. ‘Miss Appleby, something bothering you?’

Remus could sense where this might be going from the way she was looking at him and decided to ensure there was a desk between them at all times.

‘Professor, I just wanted to say thank you for helping my brother, Michael.’ She said and smiled a sickeningly sweet smile. 

‘It’s quite alright, I’m sorry to hear that your father isn’t as encouraging-‘

‘He’s not my dad.’ She interrupted and a few things in Remus’s head became clearer. ‘Same mum, different dads.’

Remus nodded and pitied the bright, young woman that stood in his classroom. 

‘I know that this isn’t exactly… appropriate, but I just wanted to say it before I left Hogwarts for good and might not get the chance.’ Remus was about to interrupt when she continued speaking. ‘Your wife, I remember you saying once when she was in the hospital wing, that no man could do better than her,’ this was not going where Remus expected. ‘I just wanted to say that it stuck with me for a long time and I’m grateful that she has managed to do all the things she has done. I can’t imagine what it was like to watch her work up close.’ Remus could see his student was close to tears and took a step closer to her. ‘My cousin is a werewolf.’ Remus stopped. ‘He works for Gringotts and he wouldn’t have been able to if it wasn’t for her. Will you tell her I’m grateful?’ 

‘Of course.’ Remus nodded and suddenly a new light shone on Miss Appleby, one that Remus least expected. 

‘And I’m sorry that my friends were being… you know… teenagers and weird.’ 

Remus put his hand up to stop her and chuckled slightly. ‘There’s no need to apologise, I’m sure you’ll all find better people than me to occupy your time with.’ 

Miss Appleby had a sudden sadness to her. ‘Yeah… probably not.’ She said the last bit much more quietly and if Remus hadn’t been listening for her shy answer, he might not have heard it. But he did.

‘Why don’t you get some fresh air before dinner? Clear your mind a little.’ Remus suggested.

The young woman nodded and left his classroom finally. For whatever reason, Remus found himself racing up his stairs to see Angelina. Happiness flooded his chest and he took two strides over to where she was leaning against his wall reading. He made quick work of the book, making sure not to lose her place and returned to kiss her deeply. He had missed her so much. 

Angelina laughed a little and it was the only thing that stopped him kissing her for just a moment. He could still feel her strong, soft body against his and still taste her on his lips.

‘Remus.’ She chuckled and pulled away slightly to see him. ‘I missed you too.’ She said and they finally sat down with a cup of tea to talk about her trip.

 

I had told him about everything I saw while I was there and how it was frustrating to come back with very little.

‘I can understand that.’ He nodded and I watched his eyes flicker over my body. I rolled my eyes at him. ‘Sorry, you look good with a tan.’ His cheeks had gone slightly pink.

‘Something you should look at getting at some point.’ I joked back. We sat for a few moments longer before I really needed to tell him what had happened with Fran.

I took my time and tried to go over the details with care.

‘We didn’t kiss, I want that part to be clear. I ran away when he tried, but I felt like crap, I felt like the worst person in the world. I don’t know why I let it go so far. David thinks it’s because I was lonely and I think it would be easy to use that as an excuse, but I don’t know.’ There it was, out in the open and I had no idea what would happened next.

Remus sighed and sat back in his chair. He took a long time to think and it unnerved me to no end.

‘I think…’ he began and then stopped to think some more. ‘You barely spoke to anyone while you were there. The logical and most likely reason that you allowed this to happen is that you were in fact lonely, but I am angry about it and a little disappointed.’

‘I’m sorry.’ I could feel the tears building in the corners of my eyes. ‘I can’t undo it, but I can promise that I’ll never let it happen again. It was so fast and I didn’t know what to do.’

Was that a faint smile on his face? I frowned a little.

‘Sorry, just you saying it was fast.’ Remus explained. I wasn’t sure what he was talking about. ‘That is traditionally how dates end. I told you before, we aren’t conventional, but we work.’

I took a breath and thought about Remus for a moment. ‘You can yell at me if you want, if you’re that angry? Or tell me to leave, or… something.’

‘I could.’ Remus nodded. ‘But that wouldn’t be constructive to my cause.’

‘Your cause?’

‘In making you happy.’ It was simple and concise. ‘You respond best to calm conversation, though I’d rather not hear anything else involving Fran, I should admit that I did something, not so moral either… Professor Babbling, she gets very nervous around me and I decided that trying to look attractive to her might’ve helped me acquire that book. It worked, and I hated myself for it.’ 

I thought about his response for a moment and wondered why he would go to such lengths for a book.

‘For me to take the moral high ground would be wrong.’ I watched him sip his tea and think for another moment. ‘I think we should put this behind us, we don’t need to dwell on our mistakes, we just need to acknowledge them and move on. Can we do that?’

I thought I could do that, but there was something nagging away in the back of my mind. ‘I still feel guilty.’

Remus nodded. ‘As do I, but in time, I’m sure that will fade for the both of us.’ 

He was so calm and so ready to forget about what I had done, maybe he knew better and this was what was best for us. ‘Okay, I trust you.’

‘Good.’ Remus put his tea down and smiled. ‘Now, tell me about the twins, have you seen them since the birth?’

I had to laugh, he was so excited to hear about the children and throughout telling him about Benji and Jocelyne and how happy and stressed they were, I had brief flickers of the conversations we had had about the possibility of having children. It seemed so far off and unlikely.

I stayed the night with Remus and he was just as eager to show me he missed me all through the night, he’d be exhausted for teaching the next day.

‘I don’t care.’ He hummed into my neck and I felt the soft prickly of his beard, it felt good. ‘I don’t know when I’ll see you again, I need to focus on the exam period… so please try not to get hurt this summer?’ That made us both laugh and I promised I would try.


	18. Turning Point

I didn’t have any real plans for the summer, mostly just watching the World Cup that France was hosting and researching the symbols.

Darren was training harder than ever and looked to be feeling a bit disheartened by the little progress he was making.

‘Well, why don’t I give you a little competition?’ I said after breakfast. Mum and dad had left for the day and it was just us left in the house. 

‘Competition?’ He said, putting a few of the dry dishes away.

‘Yeah, but I mean if you think you can’t beat your little sister in a friendly match of strength, then I guess I understand.’ He knew I was teasing him and laughed anyway.

‘Alright then, let’s do this.’

Darren and I trained all day, we laughed when I got tired and began distracting him, making it harder and pushing him to his limits. It reminded me of when we were young and Darren would come home from Hogwarts, he’d tell me about all the things he learned and make me laugh about the things I didn’t quite understand at that age. Mum and dad appreciated it as they were kept busy with the war.

Once again we sat outside in the summer sun, entirely drained of energy, eating chocolate frogs. 

‘So, how’s Clara?’ I asked.

‘She’s good. Getting a bit worried about the attention surrounding my private life, but I have good people taking care of that.’

‘Wish I had people.’ I commented, and it made Darren chuckle.

‘I don’t have people, just my agent and a PR guy.’ Darren explained, the truth was, I had no real idea what went on in the world of Quidditch, I just enjoyed the game. 

We stayed out in the sun until it began to descend and took our evening inside. I wanted to do a bit more work on the symbols and somehow it had sparked off an argument between Darren and myself. I wasn’t even sure where it had started.

‘I’m just saying, you spent two months in that place and you came back with nothing.’ Darren yelled across the kitchen table.

‘Not nothing! I came back with information.’

‘Information that you haven’t even translated yet.’

‘It takes time Darren, it takes more time than you think. I can’t just make these things make sense on their own, I have to put the work in, same as everything else.’

‘Really? I’ve never known you to put much work into anything, it all comes so easy to my little sister. Angie Lockwood, the werewolf whisperer, she’s the one who’s going to save the world, if she can’t work it out, no one can. Don’t give me that crap Angie, I know you better.’

I could feel the tears building.

‘You think I don’t work for this?’ Why was my voice shaking? It made Darren stop.

‘No, Angie, I didn’t mean-‘

‘You think I haven’t worked my arse off every day for what I have?’ I could feel the tears and anger swirling around. ‘You think for a single second that I don’t want this thing out of me? I want it just as badly as you Darren, I want to live a normal life, I want to be like everyone else, because this being special crap, sucks! It really sucks and you know that!’ I couldn’t stop the tears, but I couldn’t stop yelling either. ‘You know what it’s like to have things expected of you, to be the one that everyone looks to for an answer and you know that it comes at a price, so don’t you dare accuse me of having an easy life where I can just sit back and relax and let it all pass me by. Because you know that’s not true!’

There was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments. We both knew we’d said things we didn’t mean, but somehow an apology was catching in our throats.

‘I’m going to my lab.’ I muttered and dragged my tired legs up the stairs. 

 

I didn’t speak to Darren properly for the next few days and as Remus had predicted, I wasn’t able to see him. I wrote my usual letters and told him about the argument as well as my feelings towards what Darren thought of me and I couldn’t help but think it wasn’t just some random attack, this had been building for a while. 

I had revisited my interest in going to Tibet, for some reason it had been playing on my mind more and more since my return from the Alban Hills and I wondered if that was important. I spent a little time researching a place that sat just on the edge of the Himalayas and was surrounded in ancient myth about soul searching. My reading kept me up most nights, I made notes and tried to figure out where exactly this place called Dǎkāi xīnlíng was, the loose translation was the ‘opening of mind’. I knew I was on the right track.

The closest I got was to a place just on the border between Nepal and Tibet and it looked as if a portkey could take me maybe fifty miles outside where I wanted to be, but it wouldn’t take me long to fly to the base of the mountain, Manaslu. It was a big decision to make, I had no idea what I would find if I went there and I was even less sure of if was the right choice considering blood magic might have been involved in my family’s creation.

I decided to take a trip to see Jocelyne and the twins, they were getting a little big and I did what I could to help, but apparently children below the age of one were not my strong suit.

‘Just keep him distracted while I sort her out.’ Jocelyne said, exasperated. She looked as tired as Benji, dark circles around her eyes and a much paler complexion than I was used to seeing on her.

I did my duty and kept Jackson distracted with a flurry of sparkling animals dancing around him, he laughed a little trying to swat at them and it seemed to keep Jocelyne relaxed for a little while. 

‘So, I guess this is tiring work then?’ I joked and for the first time in a long time I saw her smile. 

‘Oh Angie, I’m so tired all the time.’ She said, bringing Harper into her lap. We sat on her living room floor together, the cream carpet, that was not so cream anymore and the usually clear and clutter free floor, covered in blankets and stuffed animals; she never looked so happy. ‘I’m tired and so stressed, I miss Benji and my body aches all the time, but… I’m so happy.’ 

It wasn’t something I could quite get a grasp on and she knew it, but I smiled and played with my godchildren for the remainder of the afternoon. We even managed to play long enough for Jocelyne to take a quick nap on the sofa for half an hour. That was when Benji got home and greeted his family with hugs and kisses and strange growling noises that apparently represented love. 

I stayed for dinner and we caught up on old times. There was an uncomfortable mention of Jack’s death and we agreed to go to his grave and pay our respects, I wasn’t sure I could handle such a thing, but with Benji and Jocelyne, I was sure I could muster the courage.

‘Have you heard from David?’ Benji suddenly asked when Jocelyne was putting the twins to bed, he’d taken washing up duty and I tried to make the place look somewhat acceptable. 

‘Not since we went for a drink.’ I shook my head. ‘I think he stayed after I left, he was already drunk by that point though.’

Benji sighed. ‘Yeah, I heard him and Cassie have been fighting again, mostly about his drinking. He’s been late to work every day for the past few weeks, his supervisor won’t tolerate it much longer and it’s starting to worry me. He’s the best they have when it comes to training the creatures they handle, but he’s not proving his worth in any other regard.’

I wasn’t sure what to say, I wasn’t aware he and Cassie had been fighting, maybe that was why they hadn’t set a date for the wedding yet. I had too many questions and no real way of getting the answers without putting further stress onto Benji. 

‘Can you talk to him?’ Benji suddenly asked. ‘He always seems to improve after you’ve talked some sense into him.’

‘Are you serious?’ I almost laughed. ‘I don’t know how to talk sense into anyone.’

‘Angie, come on, David listens to you, just talk to him, see what’s going on in that head of his.’ Benji was begging now and I was a little uncomfortable watching him do so.

‘Okay, I’ll try.’ I gave in. I had no idea what it was I was going to say to David, but I’m sure I’d think of something.

 

Remus was happy to find that Angelina had kept her promise to stay injury free during the lead up to the summer, she seemed happy, but like so often was the case when she was keeping things to herself, she looked restrained. 

‘Can we talk about what’s bothering you?’ Remus said. 

They had been wandering through Diagon Alley to Angelina’s shop where she needed to sign off on a few deliveries to Bulgaria. She looked startled to begin with, but then sighed and took a moment to gather her thoughts.

‘Too many things.’ She chuckled. To Remus’s surprise, she slipped her hand into his and smiled down at them. ‘I want to revisit my trip to Tibet.’ She said, unable to quite make eye contact. ‘I need to talk to David, apparently he and Cassie have been arguing about his drinking. Darren is still upset about everything and his private life is being focussed on by the media. I’m nervous about going back to Jack’s grave. I’m worried about things with you.’ Angelina took a deeper breath and Remus could see that she at least felt a little better for saying it all out loud.

Remus stayed silent for a moment and continued to manoeuvre the both of them through the thicker crowds of people. ‘Do you want to talk about everything? We could have dinner, I don’t need to be back at the castle tonight.’ 

‘Sure.’ She smiled up at him and Remus felt a wave of adoration for her. She was so beautiful and so strong, she didn’t even know. 

Remus wandered around the shop while Angelina dealt with the paper work in the back office. He recognised a lot of tired faces surrounding him and moved himself around them easily. Alfred was working at a table off to one side of the shop, fixing a few broken clocks. There was a pile of clocks and watches behind him waiting to be repaired and Remus watched him concentrate on the task at hand, it was a little mesmerising to watch the man work. 

The top floor of the shop was mostly Darren’s broom accessories and a few excited young faces clambering over each other to stare at the newest broom that Darren was endorsing. According to Angelina it was the one he was going to use at the world cup that year.

All in all, the shop looked like it had been standing for years and would continue to do so for years to come. Remus was very proud.

Angelina finally finished and when she appeared from the back office, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and gave her a small kiss to her temple. ‘Everything go well?’

‘Yeah, it was just boring.’ She smiled up at him. ‘Alice says hi, but she’s dealing with a few things just now.’

‘That’s alright, I suspected she would be busy.’ Remus began guiding her out of the shop and soon slid his hand back around hers. ‘Hungry?’ 

‘A little.’

They wandered through the busy street and took their time heading towards the Leaky Cauldron. It was quiet and Remus knew Angelina would prefer it that way, but he knew there were other things on her mind.

‘So, Tibet?’ He asked once they sat down in a corner to themselves. She sipped her butterbeer and watched him carefully. ‘You’re adamant about it?’

‘I am.’ She nodded. ‘I don’t know what I’ll find there, but I know it’s important to me to find out.’

Remus nodded and took a moment to himself to think. ‘Okay, can I assume you’ve researched thoroughly?’

‘There’s not much to research, but I’ve done what I can.’

‘And you’re equipped enough to deal with any creatures you might find there?’

‘I am.’

‘Well, then I suppose there’s nothing more I can say, but this, is there anything you’re unsure about?’ Remus knew she could see the worry in his eyes.

‘I’m unsure about what I’ll find, but that’s it.’ She countered. ‘I’ll write every chance I get and make sure I stay as safe as I can, I won’t take any unnecessary risks.’

‘It’s all I ever ask.’

Angelina paused for a moment, Remus could see her trying to work her way through something and finally she settled on a question.

‘The last time I spoke about Tibet, you were a little more anxious about it.’

‘That’s because the last time you mentioned leaving, your mind was scattered and unfocussed and I was struggling with myself. You’ve had a solid month of quiet research and apart from the arguments with Darren, you’ve had nothing big to deal with emotionally. I think we can safely assume you’re making a rational decision.’ Remus could see a whip of sadness in her expression. ‘I mean… the last time you were reacting emotionally and this time you’ve shown you’ve done the research and are aware of the things that could go wrong. I don’t mean it as an insult.’

He watched and eventually Angelina worked her way through what he had said. She was happy with his answer.

‘I’m a little scared. I think I understand a little more about what it is I’m trying to do.’ She sighed and sat back. ‘But I… this is hard to explain.’ She grimaced.

‘Take your time.’ Remus swallowed a mouthful of butterbeer and waited for her to find her words.

‘Jocelyne and Benji are a family, like my parents… they have kids and a real life… it’s nice and she said how tired and sore she was, but she was smiling and happy about it…’ Remus had an idea of where this might be going. ‘You’re…’ she paused, and her eyes darted around for a moment. ‘The way you are,’ she finished, and it made him chuckle a little. ‘We can’t have a life like that in the position that we’re in… I can’t be happy the way I am, so I need to fix it, make it so that I’m like everyone else… please tell me you understand some of what I’m saying.’

‘I understand perfectly.’ Remus nodded, but he could feel his smile fading. ‘Angelina, you do realise that, being the way I am, I may never be able to have children?’ It wasn’t a revelation to her, but it did shift something in her mind. ‘I’m not saying that I wouldn’t love to be a family with you, but unless something changes, I can’t risk…’ Remus paused, his eyes darting around the same way hers had. ‘I can’t allow that to happen to a child.’

‘What if it was possible? What if there was a way?’ She was thinking out loud, Remus could see it, her big blue eyes, not quite in focus, her face relaxing as her mind took her off in a direction she had not yet explored.

‘If certain guarantees could be made, then I’d give you anything you wanted, as many as you wanted.’ Remus barely waited for her to ask another question. ‘But they can’t. Angelina, I’ll give you anything else, but I can’t risk that, not even for you.’

It took her longer than he would have liked, but eventually she nodded and understood.

Remus listened to her changing the subject, she wanted to make things right with Darren, she understood what he had been saying, but didn’t know how to go about making him feel better about everything. She was in the same boat, she was tired of sharing herself with something else, but this was magic she wasn’t familiar with and if there was one thing Angelina would never mess around with, it was magic she knowingly didn’t understand.

He felt like the evening was everything he ever wanted out of a relationship, no pressure, nothing stopping them from talking about anything they decided, just Remus and the woman he loved enjoying each other’s company and expressing that with every word that fell from their mouths. He just never expected it to feel so good. 

Angelina was excited for Harry starting Hogwarts that year, she had never met him, but she was all too aware of the history behind his first year of life. Voldemort had risen to power and attacked the Potter home; with everything they had James and Lily defended their son, and through some unknown force Harry had survived and driven him away. No one was quite sure what had happened and as Remus had found out a couple of years previous, she had no idea about Sirius’s betrayal or about what he did to Peter. Remus was still sore from that night when he was elsewhere in the country, he was too battered and bruised to go after Sirius, but it didn’t stop James. He wondered if Angelina should have been made aware of the pain that sat inside him.

‘Are you alright?’ She asked, sitting forward and her hand gently touching his knee. It brought his attention back to the room, Remus quickly took a breath and placed his hand over hers, smiling.

‘I’m fine. Just thinking about things.’ He admitted, but her growing look of concern wasn’t convincing. ‘Why don’t I see if there’s a room and we can stay here for the night?’ There was a gorgeous shade of pink floating up her cheeks and he took that to mean yes. Without much hesitation, Remus checked them into a room for the night. 

 

Remus had woken with a glorious ache in his bones, the one he enjoyed feeling more than anything, it was the one that told him he was alive, he was okay and so was the sleeping figure next to him. He had often thought about his life and how it could have been if not for Angelina, she had saved him from a fate that rivalled death. He was sure that some of the students suspected his condition, but none of them seemed to come close to being certain and as soon as the wolfsbane was reinvented, he could more easily brush off such thoughts. Remus was grateful beyond anything.

He didn’t really want to leave her that morning, but he had an end of year staff meeting that afternoon and needed to make sure he was ready for it. He got back to his warm office to find everything just as he left it, a mess. 

He spent the morning preparing for his meeting and thinking on Angelina. In truth, he wasn’t so keen about her leaving again, he didn’t like being without her for so long in the previous months and the fact that she hadn’t written made him angry. He remembered their talks of Tibet and he remembered what it was she was planning to do, to look inside her soul. A rare goal to have, made more complicated by the fact that she had two souls inside her, he wasn’t sure how this whole business of souls worked, but he couldn’t stand the thought of her seeing the brother for what he was.

Remus had researched the story, naturally, and it wasn’t hard to see why George was so scared, the history books as well as Professor Binns said it was told as a vicious, bloody and violent war between the brothers, one that could have ended the magical world for good. Remus worried in the back of his mind that the same fate awaited Angelina if she let the brother get to her in anyway, but had hope that she wouldn’t let that happen. It was a complicated affair, but then again, he wasn’t sure he prepared himself for any other life with her.

He quickly got changed in his room and caught a rare glimpse of himself in the mirror. For a split second he didn’t recognise the face staring back at him. It was fresher, less pale and his eyes looked a little brighter. Remus raked his hand gently through his hair and found his greying hairs had not multiplied for some time now. His body looked fuller and more able to manoeuvre without pain or stiffness, the scars had lessened and for the first time in his life, he could see a man worthier of Angelina Lockwood. 

He had been happy for nearly three years now, three years seemed like the right amount of time to be with someone, be happy and know that you would spend the rest of your life with them. He glanced over at his dresser, a small box that sat at the back containing his mother’s most treasured possession, he wondered if his body was giving him a sign that the time was fast approaching to acknowledge that Angelina might just be his forever.


	19. The Final

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, what can I possibly say? All I can offer is my deepest apologies for keeping you all waiting, but I have had a huge start to the year that I couldn't risk not making the most of, I've been privileged enough to have travelled, I've had teachers who have taught me so much, taken the time to help me craft myself and I have let myself indulge in the inner workings of my own character and my own human make up. 
> 
> I hope I can pour some of what I have learnt into this story, it is one I have carried in my heart for a long time and I pray I have the intelligence to finish what I started. These characters have come to me fully formed, the story already in existence in my mind and the conclusion set in stone. The end isn't quite in sight, we have a long way to go, but with any luck it will include a piece of myself that I hope you all grow to love, after all, the intention has always been to express values I hold close to my chest.
> 
> I have two more chapters of this section to go before we move onto the next piece of work. the last chapter will be uploaded as soon as I've finished editing it and the next section hopefully within the week. I've spent a lot of time crafting this part of the story because in some ways it is the most important. I hope the wait is worthwhile and as always I look forward to what you all think. Love Jadders92 xx

Darren was more restless than usual and mum and dad kept putting it down to nerves about the World Cup, that may well have been a big part of it, but I knew that something else was happening. I knew my brother, better than anyone, something inside him was making him uncomfortable.

I was in my lab, observing my Puffapods when he came to me.

‘Angie?’ He took a tentative step into the room, I’d never seen him so nervous. ‘Can I talk to you about something?’

‘Sure.’ I removed my glasses and pointed to a chair, he pulled it closer to me and took a long moment to think.

‘The World Cup is the most important competition of my life, I can’t fail here.’ He thought for another moment. ‘The brother says he can help me, he can keep my reaction time on track, stop me passing out if I get hit by a bludger so I can keep playing. He wouldn’t be giving me a boost or anything, just allowing me to play the way I know I can… do you think I should?’

I suddenly felt bombarded by a moral question that had too many layers to count. What was I supposed to say to that?

‘I think entertaining them in anyway is a bad idea.’ I tried to be as honest as I could. ‘Do you remember when Jack died and that witch tried to send the Cruciatis curse my way-‘

‘It didn’t seem to do anything, you just got straight back up. The same when Nakamura tried to kill you. Everyone said it was your wand that refused to let you die, but no one ever said anything about the other curse.’

‘It was the brother, he kept yelling at me to get up and get my wand back, that I just had to trust my wand, make Nakamura believe he couldn’t hurt me. The brother was the one who took the curse for me, so I could get up. My spine was broken, and he took that pain as well.’ I sighed. ‘I wouldn’t have survived if he hadn’t stepped in. But I wonder sometimes if it was a good thing. His voice has been clearer in the past year, like he’s standing right next to me. I wonder if that means he’s getting a firmer grip on me… if you’re asking me outright, I would say don’t ever let the brother in, not even for a second. But remember I’m biased, you’re my brother and if there was any way to help you survive anything, you know I’d do it in a heartbeat, regardless of moral dilemma.’

Darren smiled a little and looked at the floor thinking again.

‘I know Quidditch means the world to you Darren and I know that this is the biggest moment of your life so far, but you have to remember that it’s just a game and there are more important things, like your family and Clara.’ I wasn’t sure I said the last part right and Darren’s small frown told me I was right, but he didn’t pull me up for it.

‘Thanks Angie.’ He said and squeezed my shoulder as he stood up. ‘On the subject of Clara, I’m thinking about asking her to marry me, what do you think?’

I felt my face break out in a wide smile. He said it so casually, knowing I’d have this reaction. I held Darren tight to my chest and could not have been happier. 

‘When are you going to do it?’ Why was a crying? I wasn’t getting married.

‘I was thinking right after I win the World Cup.’ He winked, and it made me laugh. 

‘Sounds like a good plan, let me know if you need me to do anything. I’m so happy for you.’

‘Thanks Angie.’ Darren hugged me again.

I wrote to Remus almost immediately and told him what Darren had planned and that he can’t let anything be known to Clara. I also wrote about Darren’s moral question to me and my answer, unsure of if it was the right one to give. He told me I did what I could and that was all anyone could ask, but there was something off about his reply, like he was going through something himself, I didn’t press the matter and continued researching Tibet.

 

Over the next couple of weeks I helped Darren get ready for the World Cup, he was getting more nervous the closer to the first match he got, but once the day arrived, he was raring to go. He, along with the rest of the team, left for France a couple of days before his first match and I could not wait to see him in his Red and White robes darting in and out of players and scoring goals. 

My brother, the International Quidditch player and with any luck, a World Cup winner. From what I had seen, the English team had every chance of making it to the final, they just needed to stay focused and remember the game plan.

Remus wasn’t able to make it to all of the matches, but promised he’d be there once England made it out of the group stage. I didn’t mind in the slightest, I wasn’t alone in France, I hung out with Darren and James most of the time that I was there. 

I went walking through Paris and to an interesting marketplace in Bordeaux, it had a few items I had been searching for the last few weeks, including a thicker form of bloodroot which I was intending to use a small amount in my anti-flaring balm. The only solid thing known about bloodroot was that it killed animal cells, possibly it would target werewolf cells? I was at a bit of a dead end with my research and this was the only route I thought was worth going down. The rest of my time was spent working on the translations and researching Tibet further.

‘You found anything that might help?’ Darren asked. He had a rare afternoon off and decided to come with me to the marketplace. 

‘Not much to find, it’s a fairly barren place.’ I chuckled as we walked past a café that was buzzing with life. The whole magical world – near enough – had come to France and there was no shortage of people. ‘The only thing I need to watch out for is the Yetis, maybe a few non-magical creatures, but that seems to be it.’

‘Well, as long as you’re careful when you’re out there, I’m sure you’ll be fine.’ Darren nodded. He seemed to be more tired than usual, I knew that the World Cup had been tough so far, the first two matches certainly took a lot out of all the players.

‘Are you alright?’ I asked. 

Darren turned to me and almost laughed. ‘Yeah, I’m fine.’

‘Are you sure? You look a bit drained.’

‘Well, I am in the middle of a World Cup competition just now, Angie.’ He was right about that. Maybe I was imagining things.

We spent the rest of the day wandering around Bordeaux before heading back to the campsite. Mum and dad had made it safely for the game the next morning and we decided to take the night to have some family time.

 

‘Angie, get up!’ It was the dull fog of sound that surrounding me once again. ‘Angie, look to the skies! You need to run!’

I felt warm, like there was a fire nearby. 

‘Angie, I can’t hold them back much longer!’ The brother.

‘Remus?’ I could feel my body coming back to me, the fog was lifting.

‘Angie, I’ll come for you, just RUN!’

I lifted myself onto my feet and looked at my surroundings. Everything was still blurry, but I could see red and gold, a flag, though the symbol on it wasn’t quite in focus.

‘Angie, I will not tell you again! RUN!’ The brother was towering over me, rage and fear in his dark eyes and I immediately turned to run towards the hill cave.

 

It was the familiar cold sweat running down the side of my face that had me sighing instead of yawning as I woke up. What was it I was dreaming about? I never woke up abruptly anymore, it was always slow and so much more of an effort, something was going on in my head, something I couldn’t see properly and somehow my trip to Tibet, felt even more urgent than before.

Remus kept his promise, he showed up the day after England won their group and the round of sixteen began. I loved doing things with him and watching Quidditch had become one of those things I had grown to miss while I was away. 

We were all in one of the boxes and eye level with the hoops, along with my parents, Clara and the Potters. Harry was cheering his father on and it was the first time we would see James and Darren start together. James was the playmaker while Darren just went about his usual business of goal scoring. The game only went on for about two hours before the snitch was caught by the England seeker, it had been a tough encounter against the Germans and I could see it had taken a lot out of Darren, who went into the tunnel as soon as he could.

‘Come on, let’s get out of here.’ My father said as we all began leaving the box.

‘Listen!’

I whipped my head around to where the voice had come from, but all I could see was the crowd on the opposite side of the stadium. It must have been someone talking to their children on one of the lower levels, all sorts of sounds were travelling around the crowd area. But if that was the case, why was there a trickle of cold sweat running down the back of my neck.

‘Angelina?’ Remus called, gently from the exit.

‘Coming.’ I followed him out and tried to forget all about what I thought I heard. 

We all went back to the campsite and on occasion I would get caught cheering with some of the other English fans who knew that Darren was my brother. Remus was usually the one to drag me away and laugh at me.

My parents had given up waiting and walked ahead to get some sleep before heading back home in the morning.

‘Come on, we’ll never make it back at this rate.’ Remus laughed and gently guided me towards our tent finally. 

As soon as we got inside, I could feel the tiredness wash over me. I went straight to bed and Remus had no complaints. 

‘I forgot how exhausting a World Cup could be.’ He chuckled, throwing his shirt over a chair and slipping on a t-shirt.

‘Think how Darren feels.’ My eyes had begun closing I just about felt Remus wrapping his arms around me as I drifted off to sleep once again.

 

As much as he wanted to Remus couldn’t stay for the rest of the tournament on a permanent basis, he needed to leave between matches to go back to the school and prepare for the next year of Hogwarts. Harry would be there and Remus had responsibilities he needed to address. Angelina, being the woman he loved, understood and even made sure he got the portkeys on time, she never seriously complained and she never tried to reason with him, she just allowed him to get on with what he needed to do.

He had gone back to the castle after England had won the semi-finals and had dinner with the Hogwarts staff, he had hoped to be there sooner as it was getting close to the end of the summer. The final of the World Cup would take place on the last weekend of the summer break and the whole country was buzzing with excitement. England against Spain. It was one of the toughest matches England would have against the super quick Spaniards and everyone was wondering what the game plan would be and if Potter and Lockwood would start together. 

Remus, as much as he was excited about the subject, had other things occupying his mind. Angelina had written to him, saying that Darren was going to ask Clara to marry him once he won the Cup and Remus felt it might not have been the time for Angelina and himself. He was never one for stepping on anyone’s celebration, especially not someone he considered family. For the time being, he would leave the small box at the back of his drawer and wait patiently for the right time to present itself. 

Angelina seemed happy and it pleased Remus to see that the brother wasn’t bothering her as much as he used to, from what he had heard, the brother was keeping quiet and although Remus was suspicious of that, he was glad Angelina was getting some peace for a while.

 

It was the smell of leather, wood and freshly washed robes that had Darren striding towards the tunnel. The final, he was ready for the next fight. He went through his usual pre-match routine, wishing everyone on his team and the opposing team a good game, checking his broom for any out of place twigs, taking three deep breaths as he took his position in the tunnel and placing his hand over his heart and thinking of Angie. 

She was his best friend, she always had been. He didn’t really care that she was the clever one, the one all the potions masters and healers asked about and the one who everyone said would save the world one day, Angie Lockwood was his sister and he would do everything to protect her. 

Darren watched as the tunnel door opened and listened as the wind sped past his ears as he flew up high into the crowd. The team went about their usual pre-match show and the people cheered the name Lockwood. It was so rare that a chaser was the player that the crowd loved, but Darren had worked hard all through the tournament for his team, he gave his all and now he only had to do it one more time before they could all go home. 

The team soon took their positions above the referee, he looked across at the line of red robes and took a breath. It was just seven players that stood between him and a place in the history books. The competition had been tough, articles had been written when he had a bad game, some of them got to him, most didn’t, but he always came back stronger.

The whistle rang through his ears and Darren was the first to the quaffle. He had been used to keeping the quaffle for at least a couple of seconds in the league games he played, but the World Cup was a different competition altogether and as soon as he got the quaffle, it was being taken from him. Darren had learnt pretty quickly to adapt and pass quicker once he had the ball. 

The game went on for near to six hours, England struggled badly, the goals were slim and for over an hour it was purely defence. Darren was exhausted and as soon as the fatigue hit him, a bludger came from nowhere and shattered his ribcage. Darren could feel himself falling through the air, he knew the ground would hit him any time soon. He could barely breathe, the pain was radiating through his whole body.

‘Darren, I can help.’ It was the brother. He hadn’t done anything throughout the competition, on Darren’s request, he understood that this was important to him. ‘Let me help you survive.’ All he wanted was for Darren to survive and he surely wouldn’t if he hit the ground. His mind went to Angie, she wouldn’t be able to handle it if anything happened to him. He couldn’t leave his sister in so much pain.

‘Help me.’ Darren felt himself say. As soon as he did, Darren felt his body wake up suddenly with a jolt, he reached his hand out and watched his broom dart downwards towards his body. 

‘Just survive.’ The brother choked. Darren no long felt the pain in his ribs, he no longer felt like he was going to die.

The broom hit his hand and Darren was back up flying with the rest of his team quickly. He was still tired and the brother could only do so much, but he was back in the game, he did his job to the best of his ability, pushing harder than ever. 

Darren heard the whistle blowing again. The snitch had been caught. Everyone turned to see the final score. England 320 – 340 Spain. They lost.

The roar of Spaniards was deafening. Darren hated to listen to it, he hated that his name wasn’t being cheered, instead it was the Spanish captain, Llorente. It should have been Lockwood. James flew over to Darren and clapped him on the shoulder.

‘I know it hurts, but we gave it everything we had.’ James panted. Both men were sweating heavily, but unlike James, Darren was miserable. He could feel the pain slipping back in and all he wanted was to get off the pitch.

Darren spent more than an hour getting changed, showered and ready to leave the changing room. He was the last out and all he could think on was the mistakes he made. It started from the first whistle, he needed to keep possession a few seconds longer and they would have had a better start. The missed chances to score, he needed to be quicker when capitalising on them, his passes needed more accuracy, he needed to work on knowing where James was going to be in training, so that he would be better prepared in the game. He knew he needed to do better. His ribs were already starting to hurt again.

He finally left the changing room and found that everyone was rushing around the stadium’s press room, Darren had no desires to go anywhere near the press and instead made a quick stop in the first aid tent and had his broken ribcage fixed, before heading out into the cool night air. But it was Clara running to him that had Darren’s heart suddenly in his mouth. She was worried, that frown that sat just above her dark eyes was one he hated to see on her.

‘Darren, it’s Angie.’ Those two words were all she had to say to get him to sprint past her towards the tent to find his sister. 

His father was rushing around the kitchen area, trying to find what he needed. Darren could hear the screaming of Angie coming from the bedroom, he ran inside to find Remus holding down Angie who was sweating heavily and yelling for everyone to run to the hill cave. 

Something in the back of Darren’s mind flickered ever so briefly, the hill cave. He felt a sudden urge to run as fast as he could and hide until Angie came to get him. 

‘Darren, help Remus.’ His father shouted and Darren didn’t hesitate, he held her legs down and stopped her from thrashing around. Remus was terrified and so was a part of him.

‘What happened?’ Darren yelled.

‘We don’t know,’ Remus struggled. ‘One minute she was fine, the next she was telling everyone to run and passing in and out of consciousness.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘Neither do we.’ His father came in with a new potion and his wand out. 

In the end there was nothing more that they could do but put her to sleep until they figured out what was wrong with her. It was the same thing they always did at it angered Darren every time, how did the Healers expect to help her if they couldn’t hear what she had to say? They waited for hours, his father had gone back and forth from St Mungo’s and no one but Darren seemed to think this was out of the ordinary.

‘Why can’t we just take her there?’ He finally asked, Remus was sat by her bedside, holding her hand and looked his usual brand of worried.

His father looked uncomfortable for a moment. It was Remus that stood to speak though.

‘We can’t risk it.’ He said, softly. He had always been a softly spoken man and Darren wondered whether he was the right man to protect his sister anymore. He wasn’t a fighter, he was a teacher. Angie needed someone who could fight.

‘Risk what?’

‘We think the brother is doing this to her, it’s hard to see what good the other Healers can do.’ Remus said, he didn’t move too far from the bed, but rather he stood almost between Darren and Angie.

‘Shouldn’t they decide what they can or can’t do?’

‘Darren,’ his father intervened. ‘We cannot risk the safety of either Angie or anyone else if the brother is to blame for this.’

Darren suddenly thought back to the question he had asked Angie about letting the brother take over even for a short amount of time and wondered if this was the result of that decision. Maybe it didn’t matter that it was a lifesaving situation, maybe allowing anything about the brothers to seep through was enough to put her in danger. 

It was several days until Angie finally woke up by herself. Darren seemed to be the only one who was worried enough to actually stay with her. Remus had gone back to the school for the start of term and barely came back to see Angie. Darren couldn’t understand it, if it was Clara, he would be there every waking second until she was better. The observation only enforced Darren’s growing doubts over whether Remus was a worthy recipient of Angie’s affections. 

When she woke it was as if she had only been dreaming and barely remembered any of the events of the World Cup Final. 

‘You were shouting about a hillcave.’ Darren watched their father tend to his daughter. Darren noticed that he had gone more and more grey in the years since Angie had left Hogwarts and even his mother had shown more significant signs of aging. 

‘I don’t remember.’ She mumbled. Angie was weak and groggy, she needed more sleep, but while she was awake, Darren was able to update her on his loss in the final and any other news she had missed.

‘…Spain deserved the win, they were just the better team.’ He said, she smiled ever so slightly. Darren could see her whole body was in pain, it was hurting her just to be awake, but she stayed for Darren. He loved her for it. ‘Remus hasn’t visited yet, dad sent a message through the Floo network letting him know you’ve woken up. He’ll probably come and see you tonight.’

‘No,’ she whispered. ‘He needs to look after Harry.’

‘Harry Potter? But surely you’re more important?’ Darren hated to see her shaking her head, she was so smart, but she didn’t have a clue when it came to love. That much seemed clear. ‘Well, I think he should have been here days ago.’

‘I know.’ Angie’s perfectly blue eyes began to shut gently. Darren pulled the quilt up to cover her shoulder and smiled, she would be fine, she just needed some more rest.

He did his duty as her brother, in between training for the upcoming season and seeing Clara, he took care of Angie’s plants in her lab, he’d seen her do it enough times and easily found her notes if he wasn’t sure about something. He took care of any business at the shop and made sure he was there during meal times so that she didn’t have to eat alone. It was another couple of weeks, but she was eventually strong enough to wander outside and sit in the same spot that they always did, eating chocolate frogs.

‘Best not have too many, dad will go mental.’ Darren made her laugh. ‘Heard from Remus yet?’

‘Says he’s glad I’m getting better, and he’ll try and make it down for the weekend.’ She stared off into the distance and Darren could see her sadness.

‘That’s a good thing, something to look forward to at least.’ He could feel his breath quickening, he couldn’t understand why Remus would leave it until she was getting better to visit the supposed love of his life.

‘I’m going to Tibet after that.’

‘Wait, what?’

‘Tibet.’

‘Why are you still going on about that?’ Darren snapped. ‘You’ve barely managed to get down the stairs today, you’re not well enough to go.’

‘Why are you angry about this?’

‘Because you’re not thinking rationally.’ He really didn’t want to start an argument with her again, but she obviously wasn’t well enough to go to Diagon Alley, let alone Tibet. ‘You’re obviously still sick and if dad was right and it was the brother that did this to you-‘

‘You think I don’t know that!’ Darren could see the fury in her eyes, the fury she only ever had when she knew she was right about something. ‘I’m going to Tibet to get rid of the brother once and for all, I’m going so that we can finally have a solution to this, I’m doing what no one else has thought of doing, because I have to protect us! Who cares if I’m well enough? I’ll only get weaker if I don’t go.’

Their father walked out of the house to where they were sitting, before anything more could be said. The argument was over before it had begun and Darren feared for Angie’s life more than ever.


	20. Just The Next Adventure

I knew Remus hated himself for not being there when I woke up, but I cautioned him against leaving Hogwarts unless it was a real emergency. My father had my health under control and I had Darren for company, but Harry was a priority. So much so, Dumbledore had seen fit to employ Quirinus Quirrell as a sort of substitute teacher, meaning Harry would have protection outside of classes as well. 

I still didn’t know all the details of the Voldemort’s downfall, in truth, very few people did, Remus was one of them, but he was guarded about it, something involving a man named Sirius Black. I had confronted Remus to tell me the truth, he wasn’t ready to do it and asked me not to research anything until he could tell me his version of events. I kept my promises to him. 

‘Do you feel better at least?’ He asked, sitting across from me and sipping his tea. I missed the conversations in his office, they always comforted me somewhat.

‘Better is a strong word.’ I admitted. Remus stayed silent, I knew he was waiting for me to continue, he could see something was on my mind. ‘I have to say things…’ I knew I couldn’t leave these things unsaid, I knew Remus had to know, it wasn’t fair to leave him in the dark. ‘I felt like… I couldn’t move… when Darren was falling, I heard him speaking to me, he said “help me” and I wanted to, but then the brother yelled for him to stop…’ Remus leaned forward with his concerned expression and I could feel the lump in my throat forming. ‘Darren started flying back up to finish the game and the brother couldn’t stop panicking, he started yelling about this cave… I couldn’t move, I couldn’t stop him yelling, I felt… I felt like I was a prisoner in my own body.’ The floodgates opened and Remus was on his knees holding me together.

‘It’s okay, it’s alright, I’m here.’ He said against my hair. ‘I’m here. Just breathe.’

‘I’m so scared, I can’t do this anymore.’ I felt the words escape my throat.

‘Yes you can, Angelina, you can do this.’ Remus lifted my head to face him, the tears formed in the corner of his eyes as well. ‘You are the only one who can do this.’

‘I wasn’t strong enough to stop him, what if I can’t… what if he comes back-‘

‘Angelina, listen to me very carefully,’ Remus pierced my eyes with his. ‘You are the strongest individual I have ever known, you can fight him and you can win, because I believe you can.’ Remus leaned in and kissed me, I felt the quivering of his lips. ‘I made a promise to always protect you and always be there when you needed me to, I’ll never break that promise, I’ll never leave you to battle this on your own, but I am scared as well, I’m scared that despite my best efforts I will lose you to him. Angelina, I can’t live without you, so you need to help me help you. Love is the strongest force this world will ever know and I will always love you more than you could ever know.’

‘Remus-‘

‘Tell me how to help you.’ He searched my face and for the first time since before the world cup I felt strong again.

‘You just did.’ I smiled. He was right, love was the strongest magical force, I couldn’t be stupid about this, I couldn’t let Remus slip out of my life so easily, he was the only strength I really had. ‘It’s never felt more urgent that I go to Tibet, I have to find a way to fix this. I can’t just let my brother and I suffer any longer.’

Remus let out a deep breath. ‘I know.’ I could tell he wasn’t happy, but we both knew that the options were limited at best. ‘The portkey leaves soon, come to bed with me.’ I didn’t hear Remus beg that much, but he begged now.

As soon as the door to his room closed, his mouth was on mine, his tongue was desperately mapping out my mouth, not delving in too far, but enough to make me want more. I felt his strong waist and traced underneath his shirt, the skin felt scar free and it made me smile against his lips.

Remus moaned gently into my mouth, and his fingers tangled into my hair, they slid down my back and his hands hooked under my thighs, pulling me up to wrap my legs around him. He guided me onto the bed and kissed every part of my face he could, my lips, my jaw, my neck, my chest, between my breasts, my stomach, my hips. Remus kneeled between my legs and took his shirt off over his head.

We both took a moment to look at each other and smile. This was how I wanted my life to be, just enjoying each other and laughing together. Perfect.

Remus leaned down to kiss me, carefully sliding his hand to take my bra off, his tongue grazed over my nipples and sent waves of pleasure all over my body, I felt it in my every nerve ending. His slender fingers made quick work of my jeans and I couldn’t help but run my hands through his soft hair, encouraging him to go further to where I needed him. 

‘Angelina.’ He sighed, before dragging his tongue over every nerve ending he could find. It somehow felt more intense this time, like he didn’t want to lose the feeling. It felt a lot like Reykjavik.

I missed this Remus, I missed his passion and his ability to simply let go of everything that restrained him. It was only ever me that got to see this part of him. I was the only one who knew him like this. I felt every emotion find me at once. Remus began kissing back up my stomach and I felt a tear run from the corner of my eye.

‘Angelina?’ Remus frowned, his arms either side of me, his thumb stroking the tear away. ‘Did I do something? Are you alright?’

‘I’m fine.’ I whispered, my breathing was a little heavy. ‘I’m just… happy.’

It took him a moment to believe me, but eventually Remus smiled and kissed me intensely. 

‘Angelina, will you do something for me?’ He whispered against my lips.

‘Anything.’

Remus took a moment and I heard my swallowing thickly. ‘Turn over?’ His voice cracked at the end, but my whole body responded in a way I wasn’t sure I was ready for. I began to move and watched as Remus was almost surprised by my compliance.

I turned over, watching Remus as I did, part of me felt a bit silly, being as exposed as I was, but it was Remus’s face that let me know he didn’t think I was silly in the slightest. His eyes were dark and heavy and he just watched me as I steadied myself on all fours. 

I could feel his hands tracing over my hips and gently squeezing them and he looked down at me. Remus pressed his lips to the base of my spine and his mouth worked its way up to my shoulder and I felt his chest moving quickly as he tried to get air into his lungs.

‘You’re so beautiful, Angelina.’ Remus whispered against my ear. I suddenly felt him nudging at my entrance. ‘Are you alright?’ 

I almost laughed. ‘Please Remus.’ I whispered back. As soon as the words left my mouth, I felt him sliding slowly into me, filling me and making my arms feel weak. Remus gave us both a moment, before slowly pulling himself back to slide back into me. I felt my voice leave my throat of its own accord, both of us moaning loudly against each other. Remus began to move faster and the faster he did move, the weaker I felt. His hands were digging into my hips, but I didn’t want him to stop, I could feel myself tightening around Remus.

‘Angelina, come for me.’ Remus panted. His thrusts were vigorous, I could feel him inside every part of me, warming me and letting know that he was never going to be far away when I needed him. I felt every part of my body release and Remus groaned, allowing us both to collapse onto the bed, panting against each other. 

My whole body was shaking slightly, I couldn’t move, all the energy had been taken from me and I wasn’t in the least bit bothered about it. Remus settled behind me, his arm resting over my body and I could feel him chuckling to himself.

‘What’s funny?’ I mumbled, smiling as well.

Remus somehow found the energy to prop himself up on his elbow and run his hand over my arm. ‘Nothing, I just enjoyed myself.’ He laughed and I couldn’t help but join in. We eventually settled underneath the sheets and I couldn’t help but position myself against his chest, listening to his heart.

‘This is my favourite place to be.’ I managed to find the energy to speak.

‘This is definitely high up on my list as well.’ Remus smiled into my hair, it was a few moments before spoke again and I had nearly fallen asleep. ‘What you told me tonight, I feel it’s something you should tell your father as well, he might have a better perspective on it than me. I also think you should seriously consider your trip to Tibet, I won’t stop you if you really have to go, but I am worried that your mindset has had an effect.’ He kissed the top of my head and I honestly couldn’t find the energy to do anything more than nod, before sleep finally came for me. 

 

Remus woke early the next day, he felt his back aching in a way he didn’t mind. It reminded him of how lucky he was to be a part of the sleeping figure next to him. Angelina had looked so good the night before, her soft skin and strong body giving him more than he thought he could handle. She was far too beautiful for him, but she chose him and he tried his hardest everyday to be worthy of her. 

He needed to get ready for his first class of the day, it was his sixth years and they were different from the year before, they weren’t irritating, they were just a bit troublesome, they enjoyed a harmless joke every now and then, even the Slytherins weren’t so bad. He really didn’t want to leave Angelina for the day, she would be spending it packing and getting ready to head to Tibet.

Remus quickly got dressed, he grabbed his tie and jacket and leaned down to kiss her sleepy figure. She smiled and her eyes drifted open slightly. 

‘Morning.’ Angelina sighed.

‘Good morning, I have to get to class, it’s outside today.’ He explained. 

‘I’d rather you stayed here with me.’

Remus laughed. ‘I’d love nothing more than to stay in bed with you all day, but you know I can’t.’

‘Worth a try.’ 

Remus kissed her again and looked over her face. ‘Write when you get home, let me know how you’re feeling.’ Angelina nodded. ‘Good.’

He left to head towards the forbidden forest, feeling notably less tired than he had done over the last few weeks. He bumped straight into Harry and Ron as he stepped outside his classroom.

‘Harry,’ he greeted. ‘Shouldn’t you be in class?’

‘We’re a bit lost professor.’ He said, a little shyly. It was amazing how like James he looked in his school uniform. 

‘Well, maybe I can help, which class are you looking for?’

‘Transfiguration.’

‘Professor McGonagall isn’t too keen on lateness,’ Remus pointed in the right direction. ‘This way.’ He began putting on his tie as they walked towards the Transfiguration classroom. 

They made small talk until they reached the door and Remus opened it for them, making it clear to McGonagall the reason for their lateness. She rolled her eyes and Remus quickly left to get to his own students near the forbidden forest.

‘Apologies for being late, found some lost students.’ Remus called to his patient sixth years.

‘It’s alright, sir, we heard you were with someone.’ Nathan, a Gryffindor who reminded Remus of a friend he’d once had, he was usually the one who led the banter parade. The class began giggling to themselves.

‘Why do I feel like you’re not referring the first years?’ Remus smiled, shaking his head. He towered over the students, so asserting his authority was never really an issue with any of them, but he somehow never needed to use his height with this class. 

‘Come on, sir, I’m just yanking your chain.’ He laughed, it was infectious and Remus had spotted the trunk he would be using for his lesson that day. ‘We do have one question though.’

‘I’m sure you have many, each of which are far more inappropriate than the last.’ Remus had a little warning in his voice, this was a subject for Nathan to tread carefully around.

‘Actually, sir, it’s genuine.’ 

‘Really?’ 

‘You see, I like this girl,’ Remus rolled his eyes and began setting up his class, sending small objects to hide in various parts of the forest. Nathan had begun to shift towards a group of Ravenclaw girls on the other side of the open area, Remus could see where this was going a mile off. ‘She’s gorgeous and we see you with your – if I may say – really hot girlfriend-‘

‘Careful Nathan.’ Remus warned, still smiling at his antics.

‘I think you’d be the last person to deny it, sir.’ To be fair, he had him there. ‘Anyway, my question, sir, the really important question is this.’ He stopped in front of Millie Foster, a very attractive Ravenclaw, she looked similarly to Angelina, blonde hair, blue eyes, but she didn’t have the same twinkle or intelligence and Angelina. Nathan looked directly at Millie, so that there was no question over who he was talking about. ‘How do I get the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen to go out with me?’ 

The whole class began talking and giggling to themselves, enjoying the display and Remus had to admit, he liked seeing love form between his students, but he had a class to teach. He could see Angelina walking out of the castle in the distance, she waved slightly and he motioned for her to come over, he may as well have made the best of the situation and he was in the mood.

‘Well, to start with you’re asking the wrong question,’ the class perked up and Remus took his jacket off, watching as Angelina made her way past the tree line. ‘The right question is not how do you get the most beautiful woman to go out with you, but how do you make them stay with you forever.’

He could tell Angelina had only heard the last part of what he had said and she smiled rolling her eyes.

‘And how exactly do you do that?’ Angelina challenged him. She had nothing on his height, but she could still intimidate him with her beautiful blue orbs. Remus gave her a helpless smile and was aware the entire class was watching him grin stupidly at Angelina. 

‘This is Angelina Lockwood, Order of Merlin First Class, world’s leading expert in Lycanthropy and Triwizard winner here at Hogwarts.’ Remus didn’t take his eyes off of her, but he was aware that his whole class was watching her as well. ‘Angelina, this is my sixth-year class.’

‘Nice to meet you all, but as I’m sure you’re all painfully aware, your professor didn’t answer the question.’ She smiled and watched him swallow. 

‘Hard work, commitment, patience and a good sense of humour has always worked in my favour.’ 

Angelina shrugged. ‘Three out of four, isn’t bad.’ She winked and the class began laughing. ‘Right, as fun as this has been, I need to get going, you have a class to teach,’ she pointed to Remus, ‘you have exams to pass,’ she pointed to the class, ‘and you have to figure out a way to keep that woman happy.’ She pointed to Nathan and Millie, who had begun going red, but enjoying the attention from Nathan. 

‘I’ve hidden some objects within the surrounding area, use the skills you have to find them.’ Remus stood up properly. ‘I’ll walk you to the edge.’

The class started to get on with finding the objects and Remus gently guided Angelina to the edge of the forest. 

‘Not like you to indulge romance in the classroom.’ She teased and it made him chuckle slightly.

‘I’m in a good mood.’ He shrugged. 

‘Clearly. Anyway, I need to go and see Benji, he said there was an attack on a muggle and needs my help with it. I’ll be getting ready to head to Tibet afterwards.’ 

‘A werewolf attack?’

Angelina seemed to pause for a moment. ‘It was Greyback.’ Remus’s heart sank. ‘He’s long gone, but Benji is getting agitated and that’s never a good thing. I’ll be safe I promise.’

‘Good.’ Remus could feel his mood sinking. ‘Make sure that you do.’

‘Kiss her!’ One of the other sixth years shouted and they all laughed as Remus shook his head, letting himself smile slightly.

‘Oh my god, tell me we were never like this.’ Angelina laughed.

‘No, you were worse, you and Jack were always the ring leaders and everyone else followed in behind.’ Remus remembered, he could see the whip of sadness at the memory of her old friend, but she smiled through it. ‘Anyway, you’d better get going. I won’t be able to see you before you leave, but I’ll be sure to respond to your letters as soon as I can, just take care of yourself.’

‘I will, I promise.’ Angelina smiled, without even thinking he leaned down, holding her hips and kissed her. Knowing that it would be the last time for a while, she responded in kind and placed her hands on his chest. 

Remus pulled back a little and watched her. ‘I’ll miss you.’

‘I’ll come back, same as I always do, because you ask me to.’ Angelina was getting so much better at saying the things he wanted to hear, she was getting good at following through as well. ‘I’ll see you when I see you.’

‘See you when I see you.’ Remus quickly kissed her again and reluctantly let her go towards the gates to leave. In a way he didn’t exactly hate seeing the back of her anymore. He needed to regain his focus on the class.

As Remus turned around, he was hardly surprised to find that a lot of the class were watching him and wolf whistling. He didn’t mind it with this class, they were different to the other sixth year classes he’d had in the past, they were a lot like Angelina’s year. Mature, smart, always up for a good time. 

‘Alright, that’s enough, let’s get on.’ Remus got back to find that at least some of his students had found the objects.

‘I heard she was leaving, sir?’ Nathan asked, he was really pushing Remus’s buttons that day. 

‘Yes, to Tibet to study Yetis.’ Remus shrugged. The whole class went silent, they weren’t stupid. ‘None of you need to worry, Angelina wouldn’t be going if she wasn’t perfectly capable of dealing with a few yetis. The kind of skill I’m expecting you all to be striving for. Now can we get on with the rest of the lesson?’

It didn’t seem to settle the fears of the class and in a way it didn't settle his either, he worried for Angelina and he worried that she wouldn’t come home safe and sound the way she had promised.

 

The portkey to Tibet would leave just before Halloween and I was determined to get it. 

‘Well, I can’t stop you, you’re no longer sick.’ My father said. The subject had come up over dinner, I wasn’t exactly sure how. ‘You are free to do as you please, but you must be careful Angie.’

‘I will, I promised I will.’

I knew my father was upset that I was leaving so soon, but this was something I had to do. I had arranged with Alice and Alfred for them to take care of anything in my lab while I was away and since employing a student straight from Hogwarts, they had the time to spare. 

Everything was in order, I made my peace with Darren, my parents and Remus and even made the effort to visit Jocelyne and Benji before I left. They weren’t happy at my decision, especially considering I wouldn’t know how long I would be gone, but they didn’t try to stop me.

‘Well, I can’t say it anymore, stay safe.’ Remus held my waist close to his, the portkey left from the ministry and very few people were there to take it. ‘I will miss you, but I hope you find what you’re looking for.’

‘I’m doing this for us, you understand that don’t you?’ I frowned up at him. 

‘I know why you’re doing this, just as long as you remember why I am against it.’ That bit made me smile. ‘I hate it when you leave, I hate being without you, but I can’t be the person who suffocates you into staying. So, be smart, use your skills, remember why you are there and keep your focus at all times. Write if you need me.’

‘I will.’ I smiled and took in his features one last time before leaning up to kiss him, sliding my lips over his and hoping he could feel how much I cared for him. ‘Goodbye, Remus.’

‘Goodbye, Angelina.’ He whispered back and I reluctantly let go, grabbing onto the portkey. I turned to see him one last time. ‘I love you.’ 

 

Remus watched as she vanished a fraction of a second after he had said it. She had to be safe, she needed to come back to him. He felt his heart ache, knowing that he wouldn’t see her again until Christmas, it was far too long to wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this is the end of this section, stay tuned for the next instalment. Next stop, Tibet. Love Jadders92 xx


	21. *Images

https://jadders92.tumblr.com/

Some gorgeous pieces from Umme Habiba, please check them out and give her the credit she deserves!

Thank you Umme and thank you for staying with the story, I look forward to what you do next! :)

Love Jadders92


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